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 I
 
 Ui^SB LIBRARY
 
 SIX SERMOJVS, 
 
 DEJLtVERED AT THE 
 
 GENERAL CONVENTION OF UNIVERSALISTS, 
 
 ANNUAL SESSION IN CONCORD, N. H. 
 
 NINETEENTH AND TWENTIETH SEPTEMBER 1832. 
 
 PORTLAND: 
 
 PeSLISHED BY MENZIES RAYNER JUN. 
 
 1833.
 
 ADVERTISE3IENT. 
 
 It has been suggested by several Mluigterial Breth- 
 ren and others, that the publication of these discourses, 
 delivered at the late Universalist Convention, in a small 
 neat volume, would be very acceptable to the Universalist 
 public ; and might, among other laudable eftbrts, aid in 
 extending a knowledge of gospel truth, as understood and 
 inculcated in this denomination of Christians. 
 
 A copy of the several sermons having been obtained, 
 they are now, in the hope of their extensive usefulness, 
 respectfully presented, to the public, by its 
 Obedient Servant, 
 
 THE PUBLIJHER 
 
 rharles P,<v V Co. PviAter!!.
 
 SERMON 1. 
 
 BY S Y L V A N U S COB B, 
 
 Deuteronomy xxx : 15. See, I have set before thee 
 this day life and good, and death and evil. 
 
 The love of happiness is common to all men, 
 and is inseparable from a conscious existence. 
 Man's very existence as a conscious and intellec- 
 tual being, must be destroyed, in order to des- 
 troy bis love of happiness. While he Ivas pow- 
 er to exert himself, his exertions will be aimed, 
 in general, at the promotion of his enjoyment. 
 
 I know that some learned divines denominate 
 this self-love, and these exertions for the happi- 
 ness of one's self, altogether vile and wicked. 
 They say that men cannot conduct acceptably in 
 the sight of God, but when they act upon disin- 
 terested principles, having no regard to self. 
 However men may theorize on such a principle, 
 it cannot be reduced to practice. For, I repeat 
 it, a love of happiness is inseparable from human 
 existence. And it is on this principle in the 
 cunslitution of human nature, tliat the scriptures
 
 4 S. COBB'b SLR.MON. 
 
 found all the promises of reward and ihrcalcn- 
 ings of punishment, designed to influence the 
 moral conduct. And it is with reference to the 
 same principle that the promises of the gospel are 
 communicated unto us, to render us more happy 
 here through hope of greater good to come. 
 
 Consequently to urge upon man, under the 
 name of holiness, an absolute indifference to his 
 own allotment, is to urge upon hirn a principle 
 which is not only contrary to the constitution of 
 mind which God has given us, but which is also 
 at war with every chapter of the Bible, and would 
 render inapplicable and nugatory all the scripture 
 instructions. Could a man be changed into such, 
 a state of indifference, it would be a matter of no 
 consequence to him, whether the reward o^ vir- 
 tue were misery, and the reward of vice, happi- 
 ness ; or whether it were the reverse. It would 
 no otherwise affect his gratitude or his peace, to 
 be taught that " God is love," than it would to 
 be taught that he is full of wrath and malevolence. 
 It would be a matter of total indifference to him, 
 whether Jesus Christ was ordained to be his 
 Saviour, or his Destroyer. He would be inca- 
 pable of hoping for future good ; because what 
 a man hopes for, he both expects and desires, — 
 which implies a choice that is incompatible with 
 a state o( indifference. 
 
 Now we are fully j)ersuaded that the scriptures 
 do not mean to urge upon us any principre as iho
 
 5. COBB S StRMO'. O 
 
 requisite holiness, which would overthrow the 
 whole scheme of Bible 'instruction, and which 
 would disqualify u« ia^^ enjoying the hopes and 
 consolations, and for feeling the obligations which 
 the scriptures are designed to inculcate. It is 
 in commendatory recognition of this inextinguish- 
 able love of happiness in man, that the Lord 
 said by Moses as in the text, '' See, 1 have set 
 before thee this day life and good, and death and 
 
 The doctrine of the text is, that life and good, 
 and death and evil, are placed before mankind, 
 within their immediate reach. That by taking 
 one course, they shall find, not a life given as an 
 extraneous matter in some other world, after this 
 course shall be ended, but, shall find life and 
 good in that course. They shall find that ivay 
 itself to be life and good. It is set before them 
 as such. And by taking the opposite course, 
 they shall find, not death and evil put off beyond 
 the last end of that course, to be suffered as an 
 extraneous matter in some other world, but shall 
 find death and evil in that course. They shall 
 find that way itself to be death and evil. They 
 are notified of it as such. " See, I have set be- 
 fore thee, this day, life and good, and death and 
 evil." 
 
 This text of scripture is almost always in the 
 mouths of those preachers who assert that the 
 eternal slates of men are determined bv the choice
 
 b S. COBB S SI::RMO!f. 
 
 they make in this life. In representing to tlieir 
 people the life and g^oocl, and death and evil, 
 which God eni^aged- by this-i^fipture to mete to 
 men accordingly as they should choose for them- 
 selves in regard to their conduct, they paint the 
 blessedness and the glory of the immortal and 
 heavenly state, which they say is to be procur- 
 ed by human exertions here, — and describe the 
 supposed horrors of the world of hopeless wo, to 
 which many, as they contend, shall be at last 
 doomed, by reason of the choice they make for 
 themselves on earth. 
 
 This is attaching to the conduct of frail man 
 in his momentary earthly state, consequences so 
 tremendous, as must overwhelm to distraction 
 any mind which believes it, and has of it any re- 
 alizing view. The only reason why more who 
 assent to such sentiments are not driven to dis- 
 traction and miserable wretchedness, is, that they 
 do but take a slight view of the names of things, 
 and their minds extend not to grasp the immensi- 
 ty of this subject. 
 
 The teachers of the doctrine which attaches 
 infinite, irreversible consequences to the present 
 doings of man, profess to be much concerned to 
 have their people become more deeply sensible 
 of their situation in view of such sentiment. They 
 labour hard to make the people feel the senti- 
 ment, thus expressed by Watts :
 
 s. cobb's sermon. 7 
 
 *« Good God, on what a slender thread 
 
 Hang everlasting things ; 
 Th' eternal states of all the dead. 
 
 Upon life's feeble strings. 
 Infinite joy, or endless wo, 
 
 Attends on every breath !" 
 
 At times ihey do succeed to cause many, es- 
 pecially of the young, tender, and uninformed, 
 to feel, in a great degree, the sense of the situa- 
 tion in which such doctrine represents them, and 
 the excitement which this produces, they call a 
 revival of religion. But the subjects of this ex- 
 citement, generally, for the titne being, are made 
 ^incapable for bodi the duties and the enjoyments 
 onife ; and it is not until after the sense of the 
 situation in which their doctrine represents them 
 has much worn off, even with those who stand 
 as professors of religion, that they seem to know 
 how to act, or to possess power to enjoy. And 
 I view it a happy circumstance that the minds 
 of mankind in general are incapable of receiving 
 and retaining a realizing sense of the doctrine 
 which I speak of. Yes, it is truly a grateful cir- 
 cumstance that the minds of so few" of those who 
 subscribe to this doctrine, are capable of receiv- 
 ing and retaining a realizing sense of it. For if 
 they should all retain a deep sense of the situa- 
 tion in which it represents them, the tremendous 
 consequences which it attaches to their every 
 thought, word, and deed, they would all inevita- 
 bly be, what the few have become who have im-
 
 b S. ruBB S SKRMON. 
 
 bibed and rdalned a sense of it — wretched 
 maniacs. 
 
 It is impossible that it should be otherwise. 
 No man can long retain the proper balance of 
 his mind, the exercise of his rational powers, if 
 he really feels pressing down upon him the weight 
 of infinite consequences pending his present do- 
 ings. He may think that he has found religion, 
 and has become a disciple of Jesus ; but if he 
 really believes the doctrine which holds that there 
 is a possibility of his being deceived w^ith regard 
 to the genuineness of his experience, and also 
 that, how^ever genuine his present experience, 
 and however good his present conduct, he is li|i- 
 ble to be led away in future by temptation into 
 sin, and that endless life and good, and endless 
 death and evil, hang pending, to be turned, one 
 or the other, to his lot, by his doings in this 
 life ; — if, I say, he should really believe such 
 doctrine, and have a realizing sense of the situa- 
 tion in which it places him, the weight of it press- 
 ing down upon him, would break away one and 
 another mental cord, until his mind would be- 
 come entirely wrecked. 
 
 Hence I say, it is a happy circumstance, that 
 so few minds are capal3le of imbibing and retain- 
 ing a realizing sense of this mind-destroying doc- 
 trine. But I have known some minds to be des- 
 troyed by it. Their sensing the doctrine which 
 piles infinite consequences upon their present
 
 s. c'obb's sermon. 9 
 
 works, brought a crus^iipg weight upon their 
 minds, which was hke tak«igg the stupendous load 
 of the strongest rail-icay carriage, and casting it 
 upon the hand-cart of a child. And I have 
 known numbers whose credulity and sensibility 
 have not been such as to place them so directly 
 under the weight of this doctrine as to be entire- 
 ly wrecked by it, who have yet received such a 
 strain upon their mental powers as to be rendered 
 less active, less useful, and less happy, through 
 life. 
 
 But there are other evil effects produced by 
 the doctrine which we are considering, besides 
 the injury which it inflicts on those who most 
 sincerely believe it ; — one of Which is the follow- 
 ing. It labours to influence the present conduct 
 of men by the consideration of those distant, ex- 
 traneous, and infinite consequences before men- 
 tioned, and hereby causes them to overlook the 
 real consequences of human conduct which it is 
 essential that they should appreciate. And then 
 to many, these infinite consequences, which this 
 doctrine attaches to the works of frail mortals here, 
 appear so vast, so inconceivable, so unreasonable, 
 and so boundless, beyond all proportion with 
 their merits or demerits, that they exceed their 
 credulity, and thus their minds become insensible 
 to their influence. Thus being taught to overlook 
 the real and legitimate consequences of human
 
 10 5. ( <»r.U~S SLR^iO.X. 
 
 doings, ami cairicd away to coiUuniplale those 
 imaginary, vast, and distant consequences, to the 
 influence of which th'eir minds have becon)e in- 
 sensible, because they exceed their credulity, 
 they are left destitute of either the i^oper sdmu- 
 lants and restraints, or those which men endeavored 
 to substitute. 
 
 But the believer in the doctrine against which 
 I am now objecdng, will begin to complain 
 that I make too free use of practical obser- 
 vation and human reason. " We ought not to 
 exalt our reason on this subject," says he, " but 
 risk the consequence of a close adherance to the 
 word of God. God declares that he has placed 
 life and death before his creatures, and given to 
 them the liberty of choice. And this word we 
 are bound to believe, however obnoxious it may 
 appear to our reason, and whatever may be the 
 consequence of so believing." 
 
 Yes, we icill believe God's word, and to it I 
 now appeal for a decision of the case in question. 
 But 1 have no fear that God's word will be found 
 obnoxious to reason, or that any evil consequence 
 shall result from its being sincerely and practi- 
 cally believed. It does indeed declare saying, 
 '' 1 have set before thee this day life and good, 
 and death and evil." And to the same authority 
 I appeal for decision concerning this life and 
 good, and death and evil, — what they arc, and 
 where to he experienced.
 
 See the text wlih Its explanatoiA- coniext. 
 ^^ See, I have set before thee tliis day Hfe and 
 good, and death and evil ; in that I command thee 
 this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in 
 his ways, and to keep his commandments,^his 
 statutes, and his judgments, that thou mayest 
 live and multiply : and the Lord thy God shall 
 bless the in the land whither thou goest to possess 
 it.'''' This is the Hfe and good which God set 
 before the people, to be procured by their doings; 
 it is life and blessedness in the land of Canaan, 
 which they were about going to possess. 
 
 To proceed, — verse 17. "But if thine heart 
 turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be 
 drawn away and worship other gods, and serve 
 them, — I denounce unto you this day, that ye 
 shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong 
 your days in the land whither thou passest over 
 Jordan to go and possess it" 
 
 Hence it is seen that the '^ death and eviV 
 which their conduct might bring upon them, was 
 the suffering of distress in the l^id, — the same 
 land in which they should disobey, and their be- 
 ing destroyed out of that land, or cut off from it. 
 The address proceeds, from Moses the servant 
 of God. " I call heaven and earth to record this 
 day against you, that I have set before you life 
 and death, blessing and cursing : therefore choose 
 life, that both thou and thy seed may live ; that
 
 12 s^roBr>\s sermon. 
 
 thou maycst love the Lord thy God, and that thou 
 mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest 
 cleave unto him ; (for he is thy life, and the 
 length of thy days ;) that thou mayest dwell in 
 the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, 
 to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give 
 them." 
 
 This doctrine is reasonable and practical. It 
 is as unlike the doctrine of men before consider- 
 ed, as light is unlike darkness, and truth unlike 
 error. Jt holds forth to our choice, and to in- 
 duce us to virtue, that life and good which is 
 properly connected with the practice of goodness 
 and truth, and grows up in it. And to dissuade 
 us from vice, it denounces that death and evil 
 which is properly connected with the practice of 
 sin, and grows up in it. I say, this doctrine 
 holds forth to us these inducements and res- 
 traints, for although the words of the text w-ere 
 immediately addressed to the children of Israel, 
 and declared the good and evil which they should 
 enjoy or suffer ^according to their doings, in the 
 land of Canaan, yet they speak a sentiment which 
 is of universal application. In all ages, and in 
 all places, godliness is life and good, and sin is 
 death and evil. 
 
 1 . Godliness is life and good. I deem it im- 
 portant that this sentiment of the Bible should be 
 often, by various arguments and illustrations,
 
 S. COBB S SERMON. \o 
 
 urged home upon the consideration of mankind, 
 especially of the young. The tender uninformed 
 child comes forward with pantings after happi- 
 ness, every voluntary action aimed at the promo- 
 tion of his enjoyment. How great then is the 
 evil to him, of that system of education, which 
 impresses him with the idea that his wished for 
 happiness in this world, will be, perhaps, most 
 likely to be found in the way of sin ; — which 
 represents that the services of religion are mere 
 penances here ; and which, having sunk those 
 lively incentives to godliness which the Bible 
 presents, attempts to substitute the consideration 
 of that distant and infinite reward, the thought of 
 which, as pending on his feeble exertions, over- 
 whelms his mind with distraction and dismay. 
 Many young minds have been driven by such 
 distracting sentiments, to seek relief in careless- 
 ness and thoughtlessness, putting off a considera- 
 tion of the subject of religion. 
 
 But the Bible presents a way of iastruction, 
 into which children may look and not be dis- 
 tracted, and in which they may walk and not err. 
 It shows the child that godliness, which consists 
 in trusting and loving God, and practising moral 
 virtue, is itself that very present happiness which 
 he so eagerly desires. It declares, in language, 
 that cannot be misunderstood, that "Wisdom's 
 ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths 
 2
 
 14 5. ( OP,n\ ?F.RMO.\. 
 
 f\rt peace. She is a tree of life to iliem that Jay 
 hold upon her, and happy is every one that re- 
 taineth her." Again, " Great peace have' they 
 that love God's law, and nothing shall offend 
 ihem." And again, " In keeping God's judg- 
 ments, (or commands,) there is great reicard.^^ 
 This is our doctrine, and it i§ the doctrine of 
 the Bible. About this there is no mistake. And 
 ic/io, and lohere^ is the blasphemer against Bible 
 and reason, that will pronounce this a licencious 
 doctrine ? As much as you all love enjoyment, if 
 you really beheve this doctrine, that wisdom's or 
 vu'tue's ways, are ways of pleasantness, and all 
 her paths are peace, that she is a tree of life to 
 every one that layeth hold upon her, and happy 
 is every one that retaineth her ; — I say, if you 
 really believe this, as much as you love enjoy- 
 ment, you w ill seek to possess yourselves of the 
 principles, and to walk in the practice of virtue. 
 And with this sentiment the Bible abounds. What 
 few passages we can quote m one discourse, are 
 in comparison with the whole that teach it, as 
 the drop to the bucket. " Ho, every one that 
 thirsteth," saith God's prophet, " come ye to 
 the waters ; and he that hath no money, come 
 ye, buy and eat ; yea, come, buy wine and milk, 
 without money, and without price. Wherefore 
 do ye spend your money for that which is not 
 bread, and your labour for that which satisfieth 
 not } Hearken dilisentlv unto me, and eat ve
 
 S. COBC's SE113I0X. Ij 
 
 that which is good, and let your soul delight it- 
 self in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto 
 me ; hear, and your soul shall live." 
 
 Here the prophet holds up before us a great 
 good which we may obtain unto ourselves by at- 
 tending to his instructions. Yet it is no other 
 good than that which is found in the possession of 
 the instructions and principles of goodness with 
 which heavenly wisdom presents us. The thirs- 
 ty are invited to come unto the wate/s ; and the 
 good which they are to procure by coming, is 
 the principle of godliness wdilch is represented by 
 the waters, which will reward them for coming, 
 as the waters reward the thirsty for drinking. 
 
 Again, " Wherefore do ye spend your labour 
 for that which satisfieth not ? Hearken diligently 
 unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let 
 your soul delight itself in fatness." It is plain 
 that all the reward which is here held out to in- 
 duce men to seek and practise righteousness and 
 truth, is the good which they should .find these 
 principles themselves to constitute. They w"erc 
 to possess themselves of these principles as that 
 which should yield them satisfaction, and make 
 their souls to delight themselves in fatness. 
 
 And then the word /(/e, as in our text^ is. em- 
 ployed to express the same good. " Hear, and 
 your soul shall livc.''^ The soul's Uvins; as ex- 
 ])ressed here, is the same as its delighting itself 
 in fatness as in the preceding verse. Hearken
 
 16 S. LUBli's SLRMO-X. 
 
 unto me, and eat yc lliat which is good, and let 
 your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your 
 ear and come unto me ; hear^ and your soul shall 
 live.''^ That is, your soul or mind, hy possess- 
 ing itself of the principles of righteousness and 
 truth, would hereby find itself eating that which 
 is good, and rejoicing in the fatness or richness 
 of moral life and blessedness. 
 
 But here our doctrinal opposers would come 
 forward, and with a coldness which would seem 
 to bespeak a non-acquaintance with the sublime 
 pleasures and enjoyments of true religion or god- 
 liness, declare that the inducements which I now 
 offer to virtue are altogether insufficient. The 
 present rewards of godhness which I have now 
 been urging, they speak of as a matter too incon- 
 siderable to be held out as suflicient inducements 
 10 the service of God. Nothing is suflicient to 
 be held out as an inducement to engage and hold 
 men in the service of God, but the promise of 
 an eternity* of blessedness hereafter, as the reward 
 of their labours /lere. 
 
 But would not these religious people be as 
 well satisfied to have it understood that they shall 
 enjoy great ])resc;U benefits as the reward of their 
 righteousness here, and then receive that immor- 
 tal life and blessedness in the future world as the 
 gift of God's grace ^ not according to their works, 
 but according to his own good pleasure, whereby 
 lie will i:;athcr into the same life and blessedness
 
 S. code's SER3I05. 17 
 
 liis whole rational family ? Would not tliis view, 
 I say, satisfy them as well ? No. For this 
 would allow those who are not holy here, to be 
 holy and happy hereafter. No ; they must have 
 it understood that they are to receive immortal 
 life and glory-) in eternal distinction from their 
 sinful neighbors, as the reward of their labours 
 here, else there is no sufficient inducement for 
 them to serve God ! 
 
 How passing strange ! Why, these same peo- 
 ple were just now arguing that all selfishness is 
 sin ; and that all the services which we perform 
 with regard to our own benefit are sii^ul in the 
 sight of God. No services, they said, could be 
 acceptable unto God, but such as proceed from 
 a supreme regard to holiness, in disinterestedness 
 with regard to self. Jind as Universalists, who 
 love God because he first loved us, and profess 
 that one great encouragement we have to con- 
 tinue in the service of God, is the great happiness 
 which we find in it; us they condemn as unholy, 
 because our religion, they say, is selfishness. 
 
 We deny not that we are selfish. And we are 
 willing to be understood as maintaining it as right 
 that we should exercise self love enough to re- 
 gard our own happiness, providing we do not get 
 into that exclusive selfishness, w^hich would seek 
 our own interest to the injury of others, or would 
 be unwilHng that others should be sharers of hap- 
 2=*
 
 18 S. COBir< SKKMOX, 
 
 pincss wall us. Bui selfish as \vc acknowledge 
 ourselves to be, all our selfishness is abundantly 
 satisfied with the i-ewards of virtue ^^ hich we find 
 here in the practice of virtue. We feel satisfied 
 that our reward is altogether suflicient, we are 
 abundantly compensated in ihe happiness which, 
 we find in loving and serving our lieavenly Fath- 
 er ; and are willing that the whole human creation 
 should finally be redeemed from the bondage of 
 corruption and sin, and all our dependent fellow- 
 creatures made sharers of God's love in common 
 with ourselves. 
 
 But ttese persons who condemn our self-love, 
 and profess to exclude all selfishness from the 
 principles of godliness, are yet so monstrously 
 and exorbitantly selfish themselves, that nothing 
 but the prospect of an immortal life of blessed- 
 ness, in infinite distinction from others w^io do not 
 serve as they do here, can satisfy their selfishness 
 as any competent inducement to engage and hold 
 them in the service of God ! The eyes of their 
 selfishness have become strained and extended to 
 such great objects, that they would have to look 
 through a microscope to see the trifle which satis- 
 fies our selfishness as an abundant inducement to 
 hold faithful in our heavenly Father's service. 
 Yes, while they sternly condemn our selfishness 
 as corrupt and sinful, which loves to serve God 
 because he is so good to us, — because we feel 
 filial obligations to him, and because we are so
 
 s. cobb's sermon. 19 
 
 happy in Ins service, — tliey are at the same time 
 ill constant labour to build up in mankind all 
 around, that exorbitant, exclusive, and monstrous 
 selfishness, which shall regard nothing as a com- 
 petent inducement for them to serve the Lord, 
 but the prospect of being paid for these present 
 services by an admission to the inheritance of 
 immortal life and glory, to the final exclusion of 
 all who do not serve as they do here ! ! I must 
 here give place to the words of Jesus, — " Ye 
 blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow 
 a camel." 
 
 My friends, I am satisfied with the Bible in- 
 ducements to godliness, w^iich I have been urg- 
 ing upon you in this discourse ; viz. that godli^ 
 ness is life and good. We all desire to enjoy 
 life and good ; and consequently, as much as we 
 believe the sentiment which has now been urged 
 from the scriptures, we shall seek and practise 
 godliness, as our highest good. 
 
 I have extended my remarks to so great a 
 length on the way of life and good which God 
 has set before us, that I cannot at present say 
 but a word on the way of death and evil. 
 
 2. The way of sin is death and evil. We 
 have seen before that the context shows that the 
 death and evil spoken of in the text was the mis- 
 ery and destruction which sin w^ould bring upon 
 the people in the land where they dwelt. This 
 sentiment is as abundantly taught in the Bible, as
 
 20 s. cobb's sermo>'. 
 
 that wljicli we have just considered. While the 
 Bible teaches that, " To be spiritually minded is 
 life and peace," it teaches also that " to be car- 
 nally minded i.s death." That "there is no 
 peace to the wicked," — that "destruction and 
 misery are in their ways, and the way of peace 
 they have not known." 
 
 Here then are the two ways which God has set 
 before us. On the one hand is the knowledge, 
 trust, and love of God, and the practice of moral 
 virtue ; and this is the way of life and good. On 
 the other hand is the way of ignorance and vice; 
 and this is the way of death and evil. And this 
 life and good, or death and evil, we are to enjoy 
 or suffer, according to our choice between these 
 two ways. We shall enjoy this life and good 
 just as long as we pursue the way of godliness,, 
 and we shall suffer this death and evil, just as 
 long as we pursue the way of sin. 
 
 " But we cannot believe," say some, " that all 
 sinners suffer sufficient punishment in the state in 
 which they sin. Are there not many wicked 
 people who get along through life without suffer- 
 ing competent punishment ?" Surely I know of 
 none. But if sinners cannot be sufficiently pun- 
 ished while they are sinners, when can they be 
 punished ? After they have abandoned sin, and 
 engaged through love, in the service of God .^ 
 Will their heavenly Father then lay upon them
 
 S. COBb's fiER3I0N. 21 
 
 Stripes in revenge for their having once sinned ? 
 None will admit this. When will you li#ve sin- 
 ners sufficiently punished then, if not while they 
 are sinners ? If you have them continue to be 
 sinners in ihe future world for the sake of making 
 them subjects of punishment there, it will not al- 
 ter the state of the case. You only make them 
 punishable while they are sinners ; — I do not 
 mean merely while they are doing some external 
 act of sin, but while they remain in the disposi- 
 tion and character of sinners. 
 
 Hence, we are unavoidably brought again to 
 this immoveable scriptural position ; viz. that the 
 way of sin is a way of death and evil ; and men 
 must sufler the deadi and evil, as long as they 
 continue in the way of sin. This is the doctrine 
 of our text, and of reason, and of observation, 
 and of experience. 
 
 ISIy hearers, we now have before us a whole- 
 some practical sentiment. It does not attach 
 such infinite and tremendous consequences to 
 our present conduct, as to dismay and distract 
 us, and paralize our exertions. We bless God 
 that he hath given us gratefully to trust in his 
 power and grace, for that immortal life, the hope 
 of which our souls need, and which be has not 
 put it into our power either to squander away, or 
 to boast as procuring by our merits. But God 
 has placed before u,^ that good and evil, attached
 
 S. tOBB S 5ERM0>', 
 
 to our doings here, which, while not so irenicn-- 
 dous a#to disquahfy the mind for calmly consid- 
 ering them, are yet amply sufficient to influence 
 the mind that learns the truth in the case, to 
 " eschew evil, and do good."
 
 SERMOJV 2. 
 
 BY SEBASTIAN STREETER- 
 
 1 Timothy iv : 10 — 11. We trust in the living God 
 who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that be- 
 lieve. These things command and teach. 
 
 I HAVE purposely omiited the first clause of 
 the tejUJI^ verse. It refers to the persecutions and 
 sufferings of the apostles and primitive christians. 
 An open profession of the gospel, and a zealous, 
 untemporising devotion to its interests exposed 
 them to many and deep disasters. Their persons, 
 their reputation, their property — every worldly 
 hope and comfort were put in jeopardy. They 
 became the sport of an enraged superstition, the 
 victims of a relentless and insatiable cruelty. 
 
 I have not, therefore, passed by that clause of 
 the verse, because I deem the matter of it too 
 trivial to merit an attentive consideration. I cer- 
 tainly do not. Nothing can be further from my 
 feelings. The reproaches and sufferings of the 
 early martyrs to the great cause of the Redeemer, 
 form a subject of unspeakable interest to every
 
 21 
 
 real christian, and to no one more so tlianto my- 
 self ; but it is no part of my object in the present 
 discourse to enter into a discussion oflhfs partic- 
 ular topic. 
 
 I purpose to state the doctrine of the text in 
 plain terms, and then offer a few reasons why 
 some receive and others reject it. 
 
 With respect then to the doctrine inculcated 
 in the scripture before us, I remark, that it is 
 plainly that of univ^ersal salvation. This is a fact, 
 than which, it would seem, no one can be more 
 evident. If any reliance can be placed upon the 
 most simple and unequivocal language, the text 
 obviously proves that this doctrine was believed 
 and preached in the apostolic age, an(B§y the 
 apostles themselves. If this were not the fact, 
 how can the claims of Paul to the character of 
 common honesty and ingenuousness be sustained? 
 He solemnly declared, " We trust in the living 
 God, who is the Saviour of all men.'^ Was not 
 this the same, substantially, as to aver. We be- 
 lieve in the doctrine of universal salvation ? We 
 sincerely think it was ; and is it possible that we 
 should be mistaken in this case ? If we are, it is 
 in the most artless and innocent way conceivable; 
 and one too, which gives us the strongest claims 
 upon the indulgence and compassion both of God 
 and of man, because our mistake has arisen from 
 taking the plainest language of the holy scriptures 
 in its most natural and obvious acceptation.
 
 SERMON. 25 
 
 It should be remembered also, as a further ex- 
 cuse for our deception, if we are deceived, that 
 this language was employed under peculiar and 
 highly interesting, circumstances — those which 
 demanded the use of the most select and explicit 
 terms. It was solemnly addressed by Paul to 
 Timothy — a young convert, who had just enter- 
 ed upon the duties ofthe christian ministry — who 
 must have been exceedingly anxious to know 
 what the leading truths were in the doctrine which 
 he was to preach, and who must also have enter- 
 tained a strong confidence in the competency of 
 this apostle, his own father in the christian faith, 
 to instruct. him correctly on this point. He knew 
 him to be eminently distinguished for an open, 
 honest, fearless and strait-forward course. In 
 these respects, no one stood above Paul. 
 
 What then, under these circumstances, would 
 Timothy naturally understand by the solemn, 
 apostolic declaration, " We trust in the living 
 God who is the Saviour of all men ?" Is it 
 possible that he should have understood Paul to 
 assert, or even to imply, that, according to the 
 belief of christians generally, and of himself, in 
 particular, God was the Saviour of a part only of 
 mankind ? In other words, that notwithstanding 
 the fulness of grace and truth revealed in the 
 birth, ministry, death and resurrection of the 
 Son of God, only here and there one of the hu- 
 man race would be eventually saved ?
 
 26 s. streeter's sermox. 
 
 I do not ask whether it is probable that Tim- 
 othy would so have understood the apostle ; but 
 whether such a thing is whhin the remotest lim- 
 its of possibility ? And I answer without hesitan- 
 cy, that, in my own opinion, it is not. If I ayi 
 not grossly mistaken, it is one of the very last 
 things which could have come into the mind of 
 Timothy, or, of any other man who possessed a 
 spark of common sense ; and, who had the least 
 acquaintance with the character of Paul, or the 
 legitimate import of language. 
 
 The most natural construction which «an be 
 put upon the apostle's declaration, is, that he, 
 and those associated with him in the christian 
 ministry, believed and preached the doctrine of 
 the salvation of all men through the grace of God 
 manifested in Christ Jesus ; and that they sol- 
 emnly enjoined upon all whom they inducted into 
 the same holy ministry to believe and preach the 
 same doctrine. 
 
 Hence he charges Timothy, as in the latter 
 verse of the text, " These things command and 
 teach." Now the things which Timothy was 
 required to command and teach as a christian 
 minister, were, among others, that '' the living 
 God is the Saviour of all men ;" but in a special 
 manner of those who have a true faith in him, as 
 such ; and, that this peculiar feature of the chris- 
 tian faith was the chief cause of the reproaches
 
 s. streeter's sermon. 27 
 
 and persecutions which were heaped upon the 
 early friends and defenders of the gospel. 
 
 In this view of the subject, there are no diffi- 
 culties — nothing»to perplex the mind. All ap- 
 pears plain and natural, though not justifiable. 
 There were no just provocations for the obloquy 
 and sufferings to which the apostles and early 
 christians were subjected ; but still, we can plain- 
 ly perceive the grounds upon which they were 
 administered. Had the primitive christians pro- 
 fessed to believe in the living God, as one among 
 thel numberless divinities worshipped by the 
 heathen of that age, they would have escaped the 
 violence of the Roman government ; and had 
 they professed to believe in him as the special 
 friend and exclusive Saviour of the Jewish na- 
 tion, they would have avoided the indignation and 
 cruelty of the chief priests and rulers of that de- 
 luded people. 
 
 I may remark again, that, had Paul and the 
 other apostles professed lo believe in the hving 
 God, as the Saviour of only a part of mankind, 
 by those of discriminating opinions and feelings, 
 they might have secured the friendship and co- 
 operation of many nominal christians from both 
 these quarters, who, on their conversion, brought 
 with them into the christian church, the super- 
 stitious prejudices, and partial sentiments of their 
 early education.
 
 28 S. STREETEK'b SLRMON- 
 
 Buthail ihey pursued ciilier of these courses, 
 tliey must have despised themselves. They 
 knew belter. They must, therefore, liave been 
 temporising dissemblers, utterl}»iin worthy of the 
 great and glorious cause of their Master. Tliey 
 ^vould have been distinguished from the mass of 
 Jews and heathen around them by their name 
 alone, and some circumstantial and indifferent 
 peculiarities. 
 
 But such was not their election. They dared 
 to be honest men. They determined to be hon- 
 est men, and to leave the event with the God in 
 whom they trusted. They were honest men. 
 Such, they lived, and such, they died, and as 
 such, they ought to be copied by every one who 
 names the name of Christ. They believed in 
 the living God as the vSaviour of all men, and 
 they fearlessly and openly proclaimed their faith 
 in the ears of the world. They did this under 
 the certain conviction that this distinguishing pe- 
 culiarity in their sentiments would not fail to 
 bring upon them the jealousy and virulent oppo- 
 sition of all descriptions of religionists. Jews, 
 and Gentiles, and false brethren, they knew, 
 would be equally unsparing in their reproaches. 
 History evinces that this was the fact. 
 
 Now such violent measures, fomented and 
 pursued by such high and almost universal au- 
 thority, tended very naturally, and I may say, 
 inevitably, to intimidate and discourage ordinary
 
 s. streeter's sermozc. 59 
 
 minds ; and hence, as might have been expect- 
 ed, the great body of christians, in process of 
 time, rehnquished this distinguishing and para- 
 mount article of primitive Christianity, and adopt- 
 ed a creed which corresponded better with the 
 prevaihng partialities and superstitions of the 
 world. 
 
 There have always been, however, some high 
 and fearless minds, some master-spirits, which 
 were inflexible, — which numbers, and names, 
 and dangers could not aw^e ; and which, there- 
 fore, could neither be subdued nor silenced. 
 Regardless of personal security, or of popular 
 applause, they have publicly professed, and zeal- 
 ously propagated, this sublime and all-interesting 
 article of pure Christianity. They have perceiv- 
 ed in it a moral grandeur and glory worthy of 
 the great and ever-blessed God — a compassion 
 suited to the helpless and miserable condition of 
 a world lying in ruins by sin. These discoveries 
 were analogous to the largeness and benevolence 
 of their own great minds. They answered their 
 prayers. They filled the measure of their hopes 
 and their joys. They armed them with a pano- 
 ply more than mortal ; and though they fell mar- 
 tyrs in the conflict, they were " more than con- 
 querors through him that loved them." 
 
 The great object of their efforts was obtained. 
 They disseminated the truth in the world, and 
 deepened its impressions in the hearts of their
 
 30 s. streetek's sermox. 
 
 fellow-men. Their seniiments oullived the vio- 
 lence by which they themselves were cut oft' ; 
 and they will continue to live and to flourish till 
 they fill the whole earth. They are immortal, 
 and destined to become universal. The enemies 
 of these devoted men tauntingly applied to them 
 the epithet — "merciful doctors," a title which, 
 ])owever contemptible in the eyes of those who 
 selected it, Gabriel himself might be proud to 
 bear. 
 
 These faithful heralds of the cross were, at 
 times, only a little band ; but their cause they 
 knew to be great, and good, and glorious, and 
 they struggled valiantly against the hosts which 
 rushed in their might upon them. Origen, in the 
 third century, and other kindred spirits, openly 
 professed this doctrine, and labored nobly and 
 zealously for the diffusion of it ; and it v»'as not 
 till the beginning of the fifth century, that it was 
 formally pronounced a heresy, and publicly 
 anathematized by an ecclesiastical council. 
 
 From this time till after the subversion of 
 popery by tlie reformation, the believers in uni- 
 versal salvation were obliged, in a great measure, 
 to conceal their faith. But there were, undoubt- 
 edly, in the darkest of the dark ages some who 
 believed it, and who derived from it great con- 
 solation and joy. From its first revelation, God 
 has not, I apprehentl, left himself without Jiving 
 witnesses to the truth of this great doctrine ; and
 
 b. STRtETEirs SER310N. 31 
 
 the number has, of late years, wonderfully in- 
 creased ; and it will unquestionably continue to 
 increase in a ratio j)roportioned to the march of 
 scientific and biblical knowledge in the world. 
 Existing facts and the signs of the times seem 
 plainly to indicate such a result. In no age, if 
 we except the apostolic, has the number of its 
 avowed friends and open advocates borne any 
 comparison with the aggregate of i!s defenders in 
 the present day. They have become an host, 
 and their ranks ^are perpetually extending, 
 
 I shall now proceed to account for these facts 
 by laying before you several reasons why some 
 ever have believed, and multitudes now do be- 
 lieve, in this God-like and plainly revealed truth. 
 1. Because it is so consonant to the natural 
 expectations of their minds from an underived, 
 infinite and perfect Being. The gods of the 
 heathen were derived, imperfect, and little things, 
 and of course, hm very little could be expected 
 from them. Their warmest devotees admitted 
 their finitude, their imj)erfection, and their de- 
 pendence. 
 
 They held, it is true, to a supreme Jupiter, a 
 sort of sullen and idle generalissimo among their 
 imaginary host of divinities and demi-divinities ; 
 but then, he was merely a sovereign drone. They 
 would have been as secure, and as well off with- 
 out him as with him. He did nothing, and he 
 was good for nothing. He neither created nor
 
 o'4 S. STREETCn 5 SKKMON. 
 
 preserved, saved nor damned any one. He was 
 utterly indifferent to every interest and being, 
 whether divine or human. To indulge a thought 
 — to exert a single energy, or even to cast one 
 look upon the universe itself, was deemed infi- 
 nitely beneath the supremacy and grandeur of his 
 nature, and the sublimity of his station in the 
 community of celestial beings. 
 
 To create v.orlds — to people and govern them 
 — to dispense rewards and punishments, was the 
 business of subordinate agents, — it was the work 
 of the demi-gods. These, however, were sup- 
 posed to be very limited in iheir capacities, and 
 very partial in their affections. They were made, 
 it was thought, of former conquerors, heroes and 
 eminent statesmen, and had, tlierefore, many old 
 grudges to gratify, and of course, nothing like 
 universality of favour could reasonably be expect- 
 ed from them. 
 
 But with respect to the livingr God, the case 
 is entirely different. He is, properly speaking, 
 an underived, infinite and perfect Being. He 
 is from everlasting, the only living and indepen- 
 dent God.> He has no injuries to revenge, and 
 no favors to requite. All he does is on the 
 grounds of condescension and mercy ; and there 
 is nothing too great, or too small, to merit his 
 attention. With him, indeed, all comparisonj; 
 « ease
 
 3. •itreetek's sermon. 33 
 
 The lime uas, if I may so speak, when he ex- 
 isted alone, a solitary, all-pervading Jehovah. A 
 shapeless chaos stretched over the illimitable 
 void now occupied by the material universe. All 
 intellectual and moral beings slept in a peaceful 
 and unoffending nonentiny. Not a \vant was 
 known — not a pain was felt — not a tear was drop- 
 ped — not a sigh nor a groan was heard through 
 all the vast regions of boundless space. Under 
 such circumstances, age after age rolled slowly 
 and quietly away. Under such circumstances 
 the livmg God proceeded deliberately to the 
 creation of die world and of man. 
 
 He had all along been perfectly secure and 
 blessed in tlie communion and enjoyment of his 
 own infinite perfections. He wfls so at the mo- 
 ment in which he conferred existence upon the 
 human race. His own nature, felt no disquie- 
 tude — no lack of perfect felicity. No, it was a 
 boundless ocean of bliss without a ripple upon its 
 bosom. Swch was the living God when he made 
 man, and when the foundations of the physical 
 and moral worlds were laid. And what, under 
 «uch circumstances, would a rational being nat- 
 urally expect frorii the creative exertions of infi- 
 nite .wisdom, and goodness, and blessedness, 
 clothed with the energies of Almighty power ? 
 Would he anticipate evil or good, pain or pleasure 
 from tlje existences to be conferred ? We ihink^
 
 34 s. streeter's sermon. 
 
 the latter. We have no doubts upon the sub- 
 ject. 
 
 Such a Being, under such circumstances, 
 could not have created man, nor any other order 
 of Intelligences, on his own account, to increase 
 his own glory, or greatness, or felicity ; because 
 these, from their essential infinity, were incapable 
 of augmentation. He must, therefore, it would 
 seem, have created man, and all rational beings, 
 on their account, to communicate to them, ac- 
 cording to their respective capacities, a portion 
 of his owu infinite beatitude. 
 
 We conclu'de, therefore, and we think on 
 strictly philosopl^cal principles, that under the 
 government of the living God, no creature can 
 be a loser by i^s existence ; and that every ra- 
 tional being must be, eventually, an unspeakable 
 gainer by it. I offer, therefore, this natural ex- 
 pectation from an underlved, infinite and perfect 
 God as one reason, though not of itself, perhaps, 
 one of unquestionable validity^ why some believe 
 the doctrine of universal salvation. 
 
 2. The conformity of this doctrine to the na- 
 ture and character of God as exhibited in th« 
 works of creation and providence, has induced 
 many to believe in its truth. In these depart- 
 ments, his favors seem to be impartially distri- 
 buted. He opens his hand and supplies the 
 wants of every living thing. And in his epistle 
 to the Romans, Paul tclb us that the ''invisible
 
 s. streeter's sermon. 35 
 
 things of God from the creation of the workf 
 .are clearly seen, being understood by the things 
 that are made, even his eternal power and God- 
 head." 
 
 Now that the creation of the material world 
 was a high exertion of the Divine power, is a 
 fact too obvious, it would seem, to be disj)uted 
 by any reasonable mind ; but still, there are 
 those who make great pretensions to superior 
 wisdom and acquirements, who deny that the 
 creation is any proof of the existence of a God ; 
 or, if such a Being exist, that it is any proof of 
 his power or wisdom ; and if there be those who 
 deny these facts, it is not very strange that there 
 should be others who contend that the creation 
 affords no evidence of the impartial goodness 
 and mercy of God. 
 
 Many, however, can see in the world around 
 them, the most convincing proofs of all these 
 facts. To them, the creation abounds with ev- 
 idences of the Divine power, wisdom and love. 
 The inspired apostle was of this number. He 
 saw in the physical world, as he terras it, " the 
 things that are made," satisfactory evidence, not 
 only of the existence of God ; but also of the 
 invisible properties of his nature ; in his own 
 phraseology, '' his invisible things," by which I 
 understand, the wise and benevolent purposes of 
 his mind.
 
 36 S. STREETER'b SERMON. ^ 
 
 It is easy to perceive the grounds on which 
 the works of cieation make known the pleasure 
 and designs of the Creator. The works of eve- 
 ry being disclose the feelings, purposes, and op- 
 erations of his mind. They lay open to public 
 inspection the perfection or imperfection, the 
 benevolence or malevolence, of his intellectual 
 powers. Now God made the world, and all its 
 inhabitants, precisely to suit himself. He had 
 no adviser, no dictator in the enterprise. Their 
 condition, therefore, and the provision made for 
 their security and comfort must be the infallible 
 indices of the Divine will and feehngs re:pecting 
 them. 
 
 Let it be remarked then, that the creation 
 everywhere exhibits marks of the most benevo- 
 lent designs, and of means wisely arranged to 
 carry them into eftect. Every order of beings 
 is admirably fitted to its condition ; and for eve- 
 ry want ample provision is made. In the ar- 
 rangements for man and the larger animals, the 
 humble fowl, and fish, and insect are not over- 
 looked. By the hand of the living God, all that 
 live and move in the worlds of earth, and air, 
 and water are daily and abundantly supplied 
 with " food convenient for them." 
 
 The sun, the moon and the stars are lamps 
 which he has lighted and hung up in the con- 
 cave on high, for the convenience of all his crea- 
 tures. They are all cheered by their beams
 
 s. streeter's sermon. $1 
 
 and invigorated by their warnmth. They all 
 breathe the air of their Maker, drink at his 
 fountains, and eat the fruit which drops from 
 the trees of his planting. Now, the living God 
 is strictly unchangeable. From everlasting to 
 everlasting, he is in one mind and none can 
 turn him. If, therefore, he hath hitherto pro- 
 tected and blessed all his creatures, we infer 
 that he will continue to do it while they exist. 
 But the former he has done, therefore the lat- 
 ter he will do. This is a plain, logical conclu- 
 sion ; and with respect to mankind, it obviously 
 involves the doctrine of the endless exercise of 
 the Divine favour towards all of them. I pre- 
 sent this fact then, as another reason why some 
 believe in the salvation of all men. 
 
 3. The consistency of this doctrine with the 
 revealed character and will of God, has produ- 
 ced a conviction of its truth in a vast number 
 of minds. After all our speculations on these 
 interesting subjects, it must be admitted, that 
 our knowledge of God, and of his purposes 
 with respect to the final destiny of men, must 
 be chiefly drawn from the records of revela- 
 tion. Nature speaks upon them, and sheds 
 some light upon them ; but her voice is feeble, 
 and her light is faint. We must go for decisive 
 information to the. surer word of divine truth. 
 There we may resonably expect to find it» 
 4
 
 38 s. streeter's sermon. 
 
 What then, does revelation teach us with re- 
 sjTect to the Divine nature ? It declares, une- 
 quivocally and repeatedly, that " God is love." 
 This is the very essence of his nature. It is 
 pure, boundless, endless, unvarying love. 
 
 Such is the nature of the Being in whom all 
 men live, and move, and have their being ; and 
 in whom they will continue to live, and move, 
 and have a being forever. 
 
 Is it not absurd then, to suppose that any man 
 will be the victim of interminable misery ? 
 that a God whose nature is perfect love will 
 {!t)om him to it, or permit any other being or 
 power to lure, or drive him to this insufferable 
 catastrophe ? We think it is. The scriptures, 
 we know, in a figurative way, speak of tlie Di- 
 vine anger, and wrath, and hatred. But they 
 n'o where assert, in so many words, " God is 
 anger — God is wrath — or, God is hatred." No, 
 such declarations are not within the lids of the 
 good Book. But it is affirmed repeatedly and 
 unequivocally, that '* God is love." 
 
 Now it is the nature of love not to injure; 
 but to do all possible good to the subjects of it. 
 *' Love worketh no ill to its neighbour." But 
 all tnen are the objects of the Divine love. 
 John says, " God so loved the world that he 
 gave his only begotten Son that whosoever be- 
 lieveth on him shjould not perish, but have 
 everlasting life." David exclaims, "The Lord
 
 5. STREETER b SLR.MON. o9 
 
 is good to all,, and his tender mercies are over 
 all his works." The son of Sirach also de- 
 clares, " He loveth all that he hath made, and 
 hateth nothing, for never would he have made 
 any thing if he had hated it." 
 
 Now we have seen already that it is tjie na- 
 ture of love to seek the highest possible good 
 ol its object; and, that all men are the objects 
 of God's love. But the highest good of all 
 men is eternal salvation. This is also a possi- 
 ble good. They were designed for immortal 
 existence. ^1 heir nature is susceptible of end- 
 less purity and happiness. The wisdom of God 
 is infinite, and he can, if he will, devise a plan 
 whicli shall inevitably raise them to this exalted 
 state. His goodness is infinite also, and must 
 have moved him to adopt such a plan. His 
 power is omnipotent, and can, with perfect ease 
 execute any measures which hi-s w^isdom and 
 mercy may have devised* Such are tlie plain 
 facts of the case, and in view of them, it is 
 utterly impossible with many to believe that God 
 is love, and at the same time to resist a belief 
 in the doctrine of universal salvation. 
 
 4. The angelic annunciation at the birth of 
 Christ is with some an irresistible evidence of 
 the truth of this doctrine. " Fear pot, said the 
 angel, for behold, I bring you glad tidin^of 
 great joy which shall be unto all people. For 
 unto you is born this day -. a 3aviour."
 
 40 S. STREETER's 5ERM0N. 
 
 Now if countless multitudes of nrankind are to 
 be damned eternally, and this angel knew it, 
 why did he mock their miseries by this ground- 
 less communication ? Why did he come all the 
 way from heaven to earth with a falsehood 
 rankling at his heart, and dropping from his 
 lips ? But, if the burden of his song, which 
 was plainly the salvation of all people, be ad- 
 mitted as true, all appears consistent and lovely. 
 
 5. The commission of the risen Saviour to 
 his apostles operates strongly upon the minds 
 of a great many in favour of universalism. 
 " Go ye into all the world, and preach the gos- 
 pel to every creature." Now the gospel is 
 glad tidings of great joy. It announces that a 
 " Saviour of the world is born." But why this 
 annunciation if the doctrine of endless misery 
 be true ? Why preach such a gospel to every 
 creature, if there be vast numbers who are nev- 
 er to become the subjects of salvation ? Thou- 
 sands cannot obviate this difficulty, and, there- 
 fore, are constrained, either to renounce their 
 faith in revelation, or, to embrace that of uni- 
 versal salvation ; and their reason dictates the 
 latter. 
 
 6. The extent of the death of Christ is, 
 with not a (ew, a most powerful reason for the 
 truth of universalism. He died not for a select 
 number. No, if the scriptures are to be cred- 
 ited, '* He gave himself a ransom for all. He
 
 5 STKELrLIl i, 5KRMON. 
 
 41 
 
 tasted death for every man." He died that 
 they " might live not to ^emselves, Iput to him 
 that died for them and rose again" — that they 
 might live holy and happy forever. But why 
 did Jesus die for all, if it were decreed, or, if 
 he knew that, from any circumstancEs whatever, 
 a part only would be saved by hrm ? Was not 
 this shedding in vain that holy " blood which 
 speaketh better things than that of Abel" ? But 
 when the final salvation of all men is admitted, 
 this difficulty vanishes, and the death o( Christ 
 for all appears wise and economical. Is it 
 strange then, that so many believe in universal' 
 ism ? 
 
 7. I shall ofFcir but one reason mCre, and I 
 have time barely to mention that. It is the 
 resurrection of Christ from the dead. He 
 died as the head of every man, and he was 
 raised as the head of every man. His resurrec- 
 tion was a solemn pledge of the ultimate resur- 
 rection of the human race at large. He was 
 raised that all men migbt be made alive ia him 
 to die no more. Hence he declared, "If I be 
 lifted up from the earth I will draw all men 
 unto me." So we are assured by an apostle 
 that, "as in Adam all die, even so in Christ 
 shall all be made alive." But I must not en- 
 large. Such are a few of the reasons why 
 some believe in the eventual salvation of iHi 
 A*
 
 42 8. STKELTKR'i StU.MON. 
 
 men. Multitudes more might be addiiced had 
 we time, but these must suffice. 
 
 Let us now attend for a moment to the other 
 side of this question. It is affirmed of this 
 doctrine, that a vast majority of christians have 
 always disbelieved and rejected it; and, it is, 
 therefore, inferred that the doctrine itself is 
 false and dangerous. From this circumstance 
 also, we are solemnly urged to abjure our o.^n 
 faith in it — to give it up as a pleasing, but 
 groundless and soul-destroying fiction. But 
 we cannot do it. Verbally, perhaps, we might; 
 but still, our hearts would falsify the language 
 of our lips. They are full of it to the very 
 core. 
 
 With the deep convictions of its truth result- 
 ing from the evidences just referred to, let what 
 may happen, we cannot abandon our faith. 
 Let heaven or hell come, we cannot do it. In 
 the language of the patriot Adams, with refer- 
 ence to a great, though less momentous subject, 
 *' Sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish," 
 we cannot give up our belief, that the " living 
 God is truly the Saviour of all men." 
 
 We could not do this if we would, and we 
 would not do it if we could. It is loo honor- 
 able to God, and too essential to the repose of 
 man. The fact that a majority of christians 
 have disbelieved this doctrine, we admit ; but 
 the inference drawn from this fact,, that the
 
 s. strheter's sermon. 43 
 
 doctrine itself is therefore, false and dangerous, 
 we utterly deny. We have another and more 
 satisfactory way to dispose of it. We deny 
 that the truth of a doctrine can be safely in- 
 ferred from the number who embrace it, or, its 
 falsehood, from the number who reject it. The 
 rule is a dangerous one. If adopted^t would 
 lead to the falsification of every revealed truth. 
 
 The great mass of mankind do not believe in 
 the existence of the living and true God ; but 
 shall we^ therefore, infer that there is none, and 
 all become atheists or idolaters ? We read of 
 those who "believed not the word of God," 
 and who "rejected his statutes and commands." 
 The pharisees also, and the whole body of the 
 Jewish nation, " rejected the counsel of God 
 against themselves." But what then ? Must 
 we hence infer that the word, statutes and coun- 
 sels of Jehovah are all a tissue of falsehoods ? 
 Certainly not. They are true. They are ."just 
 and right altogether." 
 
 The objection then, so often brought against 
 universalism, that but few, comparatively, have 
 espoused it, has no weight in it. It is obvious- 
 ly destitute of a solid foundation. The same 
 objection, substantially, may be urged against 
 Christianity itself, and the opinions of every 
 sect in Christendom, with as much propriety, as 
 against those of universahsts. Why then, 
 should we be singled out and made the sole vie-
 
 14 5. STREETER'b SERMON. 
 
 tims of this sweeping objection' ? We certainly 
 ought not to be. It is treating us unjustly. 
 But few of mankind, comparatively, have in 
 any age embraced the christian system ; and 
 fewer still, the peculiar views of any ^Tarticular 
 denomination. 
 
 Henc^ if the number of adherents to a reli- 
 gious faith be made tlie criterion of its truth, or 
 its falsehood, our limitarian neighbors will be in 
 a condition no less disa«trous than ours. They 
 will all be proved errorists and^ heretics. 
 Their creeds will all ^become false and danger- 
 ous. Adopt this criterion, and there is no way 
 to avoid these results. There are more heterodox 
 than orthodox in the world — more catholics than 
 protestants — more Mahometans than catholics ; 
 and more pagans than all the others put together. 
 
 Now, we are not prepared to adopt a rule, as 
 the criterion of a true faith, at such an incalcu- 
 lable expense. We can account, satisfactorily, 
 for the rejection of our sentiments without sus- 
 pecting their truth ; and, without calling in ques- 
 tion the piety of those by whom they are reject- 
 ed. We can do this, and still admit, as we are 
 disposed to do, thatlimitarians, so far as they 
 understand the matter, are honest, sincere and 
 zealous christians. And now, if your patience 
 will last, and I expected to tax it pretty largely 
 when 1 began, but, if it w^ill hold out a little 
 longer, I will lay before you some reasons which
 
 s. streeter's sermon. 45 
 
 are satisfactory to myself, why universalism, 
 tiie plain doctrine of the text, has been, and 
 still is, rejected by the great mass of christian 
 professors. 
 
 But before I proceed, I must be permitted to 
 premise a few things in the negative. And, 
 
 1. It is not, because the doctrine itself is 
 false. 2. It is not, because it is corrupt, or 
 dangerous, or, in any ^degree, of a licentious 
 and immoral tendency. 3. It is not, because 
 this sentiment is not clearly and abundantly re- 
 vealed in the holy scriptures. 4. Nor is it, 
 because it has not been believed and advocated 
 by men of unquestionable probity and superior 
 talents, of profound erudition and science, sa- 
 cred and profane ; and, who have maintained 
 through life a high character for piety and every 
 moral virtue. No, none of these things can be 
 justly brought against our faith. 
 
 But in the affirmative I shall remark, 
 
 1. This doctrine has for a long time, and still 
 does, require christians in general to give up 
 their old opinions and habits. To embrace it, 
 they must throw away a formulary which is ven- 
 erable for its antiquity ; and, which is stamped 
 with a high and adventitious value by the num- 
 bers, talents and stations of those who espouse 
 and support it. Now but few, comparatively, 
 in any age or country, possess moral courage
 
 46 S. STREETKR^S SERMON. 
 
 enough to take such a step. It is a sacrifioe too 
 mighty for their heroism. 
 
 Men, generally, have a natural and very strong 
 attachment to whatever bears the impress of an- 
 tiquity. The mere rehcs of other ages are so 
 fascinating to thousands; and, exert such a pow- 
 er over their feelings, and even over their under- 
 standings, as to hold them spell-bound. They 
 feel a high and almost boundless veneration for 
 those time-honoured institutions and opinions 
 which have defied the powers of innovation, 
 and stood unshaken and unchanged through a 
 long lapse of ages. They have an impression 
 that whatever has endured a long time must be 
 well founded and valuable. 
 
 It should also be remembered, that they are 
 early trained to a disrelish for revolution, espe- 
 cially in matters of religion; and' that they, 
 therefore, shrink from any thing like innovation 
 in the doctrines and discipline of their church, 
 from the influence of a habit which has formed 
 within them a sort of superinduced^jnstinct. 
 They feel towards an old religious opinion, 
 though it seems to totter for want of a founda- 
 tion, much as they do towards an old tenement 
 which time has shattered: They are exceed- 
 ingly uneasy at the thought of remaining longer 
 in it; but still, they feel a sovereign disinclina- 
 tion, a chilling dread at the idea of quitting it. 
 
 The consideration that it was the home of an
 
 S. STREETER^S SERMON. 47 
 
 honored father and mother — of a numerous 
 family of children — and, of a long line of illus- 
 trious ancestors, renders the idea of abandoning 
 such a residence still more painful, and it may 
 disqualify them for forming the resolution to do 
 it. Now, it is the same with people in regard 
 to long-rherished religious opinions. To relin- 
 quish them requires a resolution which the great 
 body of the community do not possess. This 
 single consideration, therefore, of itself, accounts 
 satisfactorily for the tenacity with which chris- 
 tians in general have hugged and cherished the 
 doctrine of endless misery; and, for the unyield- 
 ing stubbornness with which they have rejected 
 and opposed that of the salvation of all men. 
 
 This doctrine requires them to give up old 
 opinions, and customs, and associations, for 
 new ones; and, to do this under peculiarly trying 
 circumstances, — to turn their backs upon all, or 
 nearly all, which their fathers held sacred in re- 
 ligion, and to take to their bosoms sentiments 
 which they deemed false and destructive; and, 
 which they spurned from them with deep abhor- 
 rence. Surely but few of our feeble race are 
 sufficient for these things. Such a course seems 
 to them hke becoming parricides — of deliber- 
 ately performing an act of filial expatriation. Is 
 it strange then, that the multitudes should trem- 
 ble and quail at the thought of taking such a 
 step; and, that they should resolve to continue
 
 48 S. STREETER S SERMOX. 
 
 wedded to their old religious sentiments, how- 
 ever absurd and contradictory they may be '^ 
 No, it certainly is not. It would be almost a 
 miracle were they to do otherwise. 
 
 2. A constitutional timidity, strengthened and 
 rendered more sensitive by education and a hab- 
 it of false thinking, has kept back vast numbers 
 from embracing this truth. They startle at eve- 
 ry sentiment in religion which the majority do 
 not hold and approve. They are strongly sus- 
 picious that it is false — a dangerous, and, per- 
 jiaps, a damnable heresy, and that it will be 
 attended with evil, if not fatal consequences. 
 In the language of the psalmist, " They are 
 in great fear where no fear is." And one thing 
 which renders it exceedingly difficult, and, in- 
 deed, almost morally impossible for them to 
 break the chains of mental slavery, is, they 
 deem suspicion to be highly favourable to reli- 
 gious security and a growth in grace. 
 
 They have been trained up in the belief, and 
 it has become a habit with them, that the appre- 
 hension of some remote and tremendous evil is 
 essential to the safety of their souls; and, to 
 their prosperity and progress in the divine life. 
 Without something of the kind iheir religion, 
 they think, would wither and die. Now such 
 christians fear nothing so much as a religious 
 faith which would diminish their forebodings of 
 terrible disasters and miseries in the world to
 
 s. streeter's sermox. 49 
 
 come. They dare not, therefore, embnce the 
 doctrine of God's love in the full extent of it — 
 the salvation of all men, because it would ".ast 
 out their fears, and they fear nothing so much as 
 to have nothing to fear. 
 
 3. A natural love of ease and quiet keeps 
 back a great many from the belief and profession 
 of universalism. They are too indolent and 
 irresolute in their general temperament, to inves- 
 tigate, or embrace, a system of religion which 
 will awaken controversy and involve them in 
 conflicts. They cannot endure the thought of 
 digging for new truths, or, of fighting the bat- 
 tles necessary to defend them when they are 
 acquired. 
 
 They do not, therefore, even grasp after high- 
 er and nobler views of God and his government 
 than their predecessors entertained. They 
 choose rather to take the opinions of those who 
 have gone before them on trust, than to set up 
 for themselves, or to form new associations. 
 The profession of long-cherished sentiments 
 subjects them to no contests, and involves them 
 in no hazzards. They can hold them in peace, 
 and avow them with honour; and such a temp- 
 tation they cannot withstand. All such will of 
 course reject the doctrine of universal salvation. 
 They will persist in their adherence to old dog- 
 mas and systems; and glide quietly on with the 
 '5
 
 50 I S. oTREETER'b SERMON. 
 
 current pf popular opinion. We have, however, 
 one cottifort in this case, if no more. Such 
 charcxters would be no addition to our real 
 strength, should they range themselves in our 
 ranks. 
 
 4. A spirit of religious ambition deters great 
 numbers from, embracing this doctrine. They 
 are completely immersed in a love of distinction, 
 and personal aggrandizement; and this holds 
 them in bondage to the partial -schemes it has 
 devised. They feel like spiritual patricians, 
 and wish not to be blended w ith the herds of 
 plebians with which they are surrounded. They 
 want a religion which will allow^ them an eleva- 
 tion and notoriety becoming their imaginary rank; 
 and which will enable them to say to their neigh- 
 bors, " Stand by, for I am holier than thou.'^ 
 Now, such people cannot bring their minds to 
 embrace universalism — a doctrine which hum- 
 bles their pride, and levels in the dust all their 
 ideal distinctions and towering hopes. But 
 surely there is nothing in this case unfavorable 
 to the truth of the doctrine itself. 
 
 5. A blind reverence for great names and 
 high official stations, operates most powerfully 
 upon a certain class of the community. It 
 keeps them close to their heels, and eager to 
 tread in each track of their feet. Are they 
 churchmen? So are these people. Are they 
 orthodox.'' So are they. Are they liberal?
 
 ^1 
 
 These servile imitators are so likewisj Indeed, 
 they are any thing or nothing, with aspect to 
 religion, as the wealthy and the grit, amoiig 
 whom they live, happen to be aithe time. 
 Such characters certainly practice »on them- 
 selves a most degrading deception. It is pain- 
 fully amusing to see it, or to think c*t. They 
 seem to make themselves believe n, if they 
 belong to a religious congregation ^posed of 
 the honourable and wealthy; and, becially, if 
 they can sit near them in the hous^f worship, 
 ihey themselves are honourable 'icl wealthy 
 likewise' 
 
 Alas.' what a ludicrous, self-dec/tion-'* Who 
 that'^^s the feelings of a man, orj a christian, 
 x^n envy these miserable beir/ either their 
 iionour or their wealth? Surel/io one. Still 
 this deception is practiced by tlisands. So it 
 was in the days of Christ, ''.ave any of the 
 Pharisees, or of the rulers of tV people believ- 
 ed on him?" This question as gravely pro- 
 pounded with respect to the dhtrine of Jesus, 
 and it appealed directly to ts spirit of self- 
 deception. Now all who foier tliis cringing 
 disposition are truly objects of pi'y — of the 
 deepest compassion; but it is certainly no argu- 
 ment against the truth of uniibrsalism that they 
 do not embrace it. ' 
 
 6. The last reason I shall )fFer is, a fashiona- 
 ble dissimulation. A habit df relgious disscm-
 
 OZ S. STREKTER S SERMO.X. 
 
 bling liJ become so prevalent in the world, that 
 it is exjedingly difficult to tell what a man's 
 Y(m\ he)[ is. Hosts do not avow their delib- 
 erate civictions. They are zealous enough 
 about region, but sadly deficient in moral hon- 
 esty, 'jey believe one thing, while they pro- 
 fess andiiipport another. You cannot deter- 
 mine thefaith by the creed of those with whom 
 they worip. This habit of dissembling, to a 
 laiuentabiextent, I am sorry to say, has work- 
 ed itself nong many of the clergy. In the 
 present di it is impossible to divine what the 
 faith of my preachers is, or, whether ihey 
 ha\ e any 0^ at all. 
 
 Like thiscribes of old, too man>F in our 
 times, we Iq reason to believe, among \oth 
 clergymen i\ laymen, "love the praise ^f 
 men more tn the praise of God." At any 
 rate, were evy man's real belief written legi- 
 bly upon his 1-ehead and his back, our streets 
 and churches » the Sabbath would make a very 
 different appeance from what they now do, 
 and one too, suailarly amusing. Great num- 
 bers would see to have lost their course, and 
 to have taken ti^ir seats in the wrong churches. 
 But I have don. From the foregoing discus- 
 sion, our opposes it is hoped, will see reasons 
 for withholding »ieir malediction ; and if they 
 still think us in (rror, feel that we have strong 
 claims upon liieir tears, their pity, and their
 
 S. STREETEll's SERMON. 53 
 
 prayers. To my lay brethren I can only say, 
 *' Hold fast the profession of your :'aith without 
 wavering." I close by repeating io my breth- 
 ren in the ministry the solemn injinction in my 
 text. "These things command aid teach."
 
 $ERMOjV 3. 
 
 by menzies rayner. 
 
 Acts xvii : 19, io. May we know what this new 
 doctrine, whereof ihou speakest, is ? For thou bringest 
 certain strange thino^ to our ears ; we would know, there- 
 fore, what these things mean. 
 
 St. Paul, in ais travels to preach and prop^- 
 agate the gospel, had been conducted to Athens^ 
 which was one of the most celebrated cities in 
 the world ; and the very seat of Grecian science 
 and literature. Here he found the people whol- 
 ly given to idolatr}^ Here also he met with 
 Jews, and devout persons, with whom, in their 
 synagogue and in tiie market, he disputed daily 
 concerning Jesus of Nazareth. And here he 
 was encountered by certain philosophers of the 
 Epicurians and stoicks. And some said '' What 
 will this babbler say.'"' Others thought him to 
 be ''a setter forth of strange gods; because 
 he preached unto them Jesus, and the resur- 
 rection." And they took him, and brought 
 unto Areopagus — the place where the Athenians 
 iicld their supreme court of justice. Here they
 
 M. raider's sermon. 55 
 
 wished t\^ apostle to give them a particular 
 illustratioiinf his doctrine, which, to them, was 
 altogether \w and strange. " May we know 
 (said they) ^^lat this new doctrine, whereof thou 
 speakest, is. \For thou bringest certain strange 
 things to our ^^.g: ^e w^ould know, therefore, 
 what these thin^ mean," 
 
 With this recast the apostle was not back- 
 ward to comply. Uq had not hastily adopted 
 opinions— or mco^jerately embraced a system 
 <of religion, of whm he could give no satisfac- 
 tory account,— whiCL^hunned investigation, or 
 which he thought mca|.|3iQ ^f ^eing defended. 
 He was himself, thoroi^i^ convinced and sat- 
 isfied of the truth and e-VHence of the chris- 
 tian religion, and so anxiou^.^g j^g to promulgate 
 the gospel doctrine of grai, ^^^ salvation for 
 all mankind, Jews and GentiK ^hat he s;loried 
 only, in the cross of Christ, anVj^terniined, (to 
 
 use his own language) " to l^nov^-^o^hino- save 
 
 Jesus Christ, and him crucified." 
 
 The apostle therefore, gladly 6^b-aces the 
 opportunity offered, and standing in t^e midst of 
 Mars' hill, among the judges in the A-eopagus, 
 he undauntedly delivers his testimony, vj a most 
 argumentative and pathetic discourse — a vonden- 
 sed account of which, together with th^effect 
 which it had upon the audience, is given ly the 
 historian, in the succeeding part of the chajiter. 
 
 He reasons with the Athenians, in ihe first
 
 ^<> M. rayner's sermon. 
 
 place, upon the piinciples of natural eligion-^ 
 exhibits those great and fimdam^Ual truths 
 which are taught by, and justly jierred from 
 tne works of creation and provir^nce— shows 
 tlie absurdity of their superstitiou veneration of 
 numerous imaginary deities— th work of their 
 mvn hands—'' graven by art an man's device." 
 tie directs their contemplation to the true and 
 consistent foundation of reh-ous worship and 
 ^. c^.'^'r"":^^'^ ONE only, pJ ever living God, 
 i - ,7°^ t^iat made the-orld, and all things 
 therein"— Who is "Lord ^'heaven and earth"- 
 and who therefore cann- fl^vell, or be shut up, 
 in temples made w-^ l^ands,"— who needeth 
 nothmg of his cre,^fes, " seeing he e;iveth 
 to all, life, and brea' ^"d all things?" 
 
 He next declare to them that this one God 
 ' hath made oPf blood, all nations of men 
 lor to dwell on ^1 the face of the earth." That 
 He had deter^ned the times— and the bounds 
 of their habHt'on-and that he is intimately 
 present w/t^ all of them, in every place— be- 
 cause in Mi ^ they all - live and move and have 
 their bei^. Agreeably to which necessary 
 and obv-Jus truth, he quotes the following saying 
 of one of their own Poets-'' For we are also 
 hisoffpring- From this heathen confession 
 or de:laration which the apostle recognizes as 
 an u-idemable fact, and a truth, of all others, the 
 most interesting, he thus reasons— That <^ a^
 
 M. rayner's sermon. 57 
 
 we are the offspring of God, we ought not to 
 think thai the Godhead is like unto gold, or sil- 
 ver, or stone, graven by art and man's device." 
 
 Such ideas of the Sujoreme Being, must only 
 be imputed to the grossest ignoi-ance and stupid- 
 ity; an ignorance which cannot be justified by 
 any circumstances in which mankind can be 
 placed, and which are condemned by the bare 
 light of nature, and the simple dictates of hu- 
 man reason. Yet the apostle says, " The 
 times of this ignorance God winked at — passed 
 over — or suffered to remain for a long time for 
 purposes, doubtless, which his own infinite wis- 
 dom saw best. But noio ," continues the apos- 
 tle, '' commandeth all men every where to re- 
 pent:" and he assigns, as a reason — " Because 
 he hath appointed a day, or, period of time" — 
 (and which, in the dissemination of the gospel, ' 
 had already commenced) " in which he will 
 jitdge''^ — that is, rule and govern '' the world in 
 righteousness^ by that man whom he hath ordain- 
 ed" — the man Christ Jesus — the appointed Me- 
 diator and Redeemer; — " whereof he hath giv- 
 en assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised 
 him from the dead." 
 
 vSuch was the reasoning of St. Paul with the 
 Ationian idolators — such his repre'sentation of 
 the cthi-acter, disposition, and purposes of God, 
 and his. g-^vernment of mankind, in their differ- 
 ent nationf .^jid L^onerations. and undeiflhe dif~
 
 58 M. rayner's sermon. 
 
 fereot dispensations of his providence and grace. 
 
 But the principal subject of the apostle's 
 preaching was " Jesus and the Resurrection." 
 On this sublime topic he dwelt with rapture^ 
 and with peculiar emphasis, as the ultimate and 
 perfect display of the wisdom of the divine 
 counsels, and of the riches of divine grace and 
 universal benevolence. And it was this part of 
 his preaching, in particular, that was looked 
 upon by the Athenians to be so new and strange, 
 which they found it so difficult to understand — 
 and of which they were desirous of a fuller ex- 
 planation — "He seemeth (said they) to be a 
 setter forth of strange gods; because he preach- 
 ed unto them Jesus and the resurrection" — 
 " May we know what this new doctrine, where- 
 of thou speakest, is? for thou bringest certain 
 strange things to our ears." 
 
 To the Athenians, the apostle's doctrine con- 
 cerning Jesus and the resurrection was indeed 
 new and strange^ the like to which they had 
 never heard before, and the effect which it pro- 
 fluced upon the audience was various, as might 
 be expected; (for it is by no means unusual that 
 tlie same discourse, is very differently received, 
 and makes opposite impressions upon the min-i's 
 of different persons; owing, doubtless, very '•luch 
 to different tempers, and different habits -^^ think- 
 ing and reasoning, and also to differe-^*- prepon- 
 ceived^)inions and prejudices.) T-'^^ ^^le histo-
 
 M. RAYNER'b SERMON, 59 
 
 iian states in reference to St. Paul's preaching — 
 " Some mocked, and others said, we will hear 
 thee again of this matter." 
 
 It is supposed that the apostle did not fin- 
 ish his intended discourse, or say all that he 
 would have said, had he not been interrupted. 
 He said enough however concerning Christ and 
 the resurrection to convince some^ of the excel- 
 lence, and the divine authority of the christian 
 doctrine; among whom was " Dionesius, the 
 Areopagite," supposed to be one of the judges 
 of the court, " and a woman named Damaris, 
 and some others." " So Paul departed from 
 among them." 
 
 Thus we have taken a brief notice of the 
 apostle's proceeding at Athens, and the treat- 
 ment he received; and have given an analysis of 
 his preaching; and the doctrines he taught. We 
 shall now recur to the passage which was first 
 read to you as the text, and shall apply it to 
 after ages, and occurrences in the christian 
 church; and especially to events, proceedings, 
 and circumstances, which are taking place in 
 the present time. " May we know what this 
 new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is; for 
 thou bringest certain strange things to our ears: 
 we would know therefore, what these things 
 mean.''" 
 
 The apostle's doctrine, then, was thought to 
 be a new doctrine; and to the Athenians, it icas
 
 60 M. RAYNER^ SF.RMOX. 
 
 SO, in reality. They had heard of Epiclirus 
 and Zeno, of Socraies and Plato, and other re- 
 nowned sages, and their different systems of 
 philosophy and religion; and their mythology 
 taught them the names and exploits of their 
 deified heroes and heroines, and gods and god- 
 esses, which they had in great numbers, with 
 various titles and divers supposed powers. But 
 Jesus of Nazareth, as described by the apostle, 
 was to them, a title and character wholly un- 
 known before, and the wonders wrought, and 
 the doctrines taught by him, were altogether 
 new and strange. 
 
 And here we would premise a fact, the coi'- 
 rectness of which will not be questioned by 
 this audience, — that Christianity, as exhibited 
 both by the Evangelists and apostles, and con- 
 tained in the gospel revelation, is \he' truth of 
 God — a full declaration of his will and his par- 
 poses concerning mankind, and a complete de- 
 lineation of their present condition — their duties, 
 their privileges, and their prospects, and of 
 their future and eternal destiny: and hence the 
 solemn caution, given to every man, not to add 
 to, nor diminish aught, from this revelation. 
 
 It is however, a melancholy fact, that, soon 
 after the age of the apostles, the christian reli- 
 gion became greatly degenerated. Nay, before 
 the conclusion of that age, the pure doctrines 
 of the cospel began to be corrupted by the
 
 M. RAYNEP/s SERMON. 61 
 
 doctriups and commandments of men. Hence, 
 to ihe Gallatians, the apostle says — " I marvel 
 that ye are so soon removed from him that call- 
 ed you into the grace of Christ, unto another 
 gospel: which is not another; but there be some 
 that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel 
 of Christ." 
 
 This corrupting spirit and influence, increas- 
 ed and spread more and more; mingling hu- 
 man and secular power and policy, with the 
 simple principles of the gospel, — perverting its 
 doctrines and precepts, and corrupting its sys- 
 tem of government and tvcfthip, by numerous 
 and unauthorized rites an# ceremonies, — by 
 forming ecclesiastical constitutions, enacting 
 canons, and establishing long catalogues of arti- 
 cles of faith, and enjoining the belief of them, 
 upon the penalty of excommunication in this 
 world, and eternal damnation in the world to 
 come; — until finally, the whole christian world 
 became subject to the usurped authority, civil 
 and ecclesiastical, of his, — presumptuously, and 
 blasphemously styled, " Lord, God, the Pope!" 
 To this tyrannical power and dominion, it is 
 supposed the apostle prophetically alludes, m 
 his description of the " man of sin — the son of 
 perdition — who, (says he,) opposeth and exalt- 
 eth himself above all that is called God, or that 
 is worslfipped; so that he, as God, sitteth in 
 
 6
 
 C2 M. RAV^EH'!^ bLKMO.X. 
 
 the temple of God, showing himself that he is 
 God!" 
 
 For about a thousand years the papal Church 
 with the Pope at its head (having obtained it by 
 the most subtle and nefarious arts, and persever- 
 ing efforts) held this usurped and unrighteous 
 control over the understandings and consciences 
 of the people; immuring them in worse than 
 Egyptian darkness and bondage — withholding 
 from them the light of God's word — taking 
 away this "key of knowledge," — and thunder- 
 ing the most terrible anathema's — even eternal 
 exclusion from the^iiTgdom of heaven, and the 
 sufferings of the ]Mns of hell forever, to any 
 who should presume to call in question the di- 
 vine, and supreme authority of the Pope — the 
 pretended successor of St. Peter; or who 
 should refuse to yield implicit faith, and unqual- 
 ified obedience to the dogma's and requisitions, 
 however absurd, which from time to time were 
 set up and enjoined. 
 
 During these dark ages, what ecclesiastical 
 domination, — what hypocrisy, avarice, debauch- 
 ery, cruelty, and all manner of " spiritual wick- 
 edness in high places," reigned triumphant! and 
 what gross ignorance, superstition, and idolatry; 
 what degrading corruption, and abject vassalage 
 prevailed, every where, among the people! 
 What absurd and preposterous doctrif^s, rites, 
 and usages, have been introduced and porpotua-
 
 M. RAYNER'b SERM&N- G3 
 
 ted, In that, falsely claimed, pure and infallable 
 church, from the (still venerated, though utterly 
 unfounded) doctrine of the Trinity, and of 
 vicarious suffering and atonement, to that of tran- 
 substantiation, — priestly absolution, and extreme 
 unction — worship of angels, and canonized 
 saints, — (especially the virgin Mary — to whom 
 they offer more prayers than to the Almighty) 
 the doctrine of purgatory, and of the necessi- 
 ty of prayers for the deliverance of souls out of 
 it; — together with the still retained, and still 
 supposed highly important doctrine of fallen 
 angels, an omnipresent devil, of great power, 
 and vastly successful in his opposition to God, 
 and to the reign of the Messiah — and lastly the 
 doctrine of endless sufferings and torments in a 
 future state, for a large portion of mankind? 
 
 Such, for a long time, have been, and such 
 still are, the doctrines, rites, and practices of 
 popery, or the Romish church: And doubt- 
 less, its deluded votaries, — many of them, have 
 firli confidence in those traditionary doctwnes, 
 and superstitions. They verily believe that 
 their priests have full authority — derived from 
 the Pope, to grant them plenary absolution — 
 even, (if he chooses) for all their sins, past, 
 present and future; — that he can open to them, 
 the gate of heavenly glory, in another world, or 
 close it against them at pleasure — that the virgin 
 Mary can be prevailed upon to intercede eftec-
 
 64 M. rayner's sermon. 
 
 lually for them, or for their departed friends, in 
 purgatory. They believe in the divine efficacy of 
 Lxtreme unction, as it is called, administered in 
 the last hour of expiring life, and they believe 
 also — (contrary to their own reason and senses,) 
 they believe, because so taught by their priest — 
 that the icafer, which they receive and eat in the 
 sacrament — after being set apart and consecrat- 
 ed by the officiating minister, is the real, identi- 
 cal body of Christ, which suffered on the cross 
 1800 years ago. 
 
 We pity such ignorance, and we wonder at 
 such superstitious notions, and absurd imagina- 
 tions. But it is worthy of serious inquiry 
 whether there are not, among protestant sects of 
 professing christians, doctrines and practices, 
 equally unfounded, irrational and superstitious; 
 and some, which, in substance, are xery near 
 aUied to those which we have just noticed. 
 Let it not be thought invidious if we proceed to 
 notice some instances of this similarity. Is it 
 not^till thought, by many xhai p7'otestant priests 
 also, possess an influence and energy very near- 
 ly resembling the power of absolution? "Why 
 else are persons called upon, in public meetings, 
 in seasons of what are called revivals, and en- 
 treated to come forward to what are called, the 
 anxious seats, that the minister may pray for 
 them? which proceeding, they are told, will al- 
 most certainly result in their conversion, and
 
 M. RAY^'ER's SERMON. 65 
 
 obtaining a hope, and in their sahation from 
 eternal burnings!— Hence the exhortations ad- 
 dressed, especially to the young, on those occa- 
 sions, " Come forward to the anxious seats^ 
 if you wish for salvation — if you would escape 
 hell, and be made heirs of heaven — O, come 
 to the anxious seats — come round the altar — 
 that God's ministers may pray for you." 
 
 If you will excuse a short digression, I will 
 here make one inquiry — Do you read of such 
 anxious seats ' being provided in the days of 
 Christ or his apostles? or of any such accompani- 
 ments to their preaching or public worship, 
 as have lately prevailed, and been practised at 
 four days, or protracted meetings? If not, is 
 not their expediency more than questionable? 
 
 The doctrine of the trinity, and of vicarious 
 suffering, is still held by the greater part of pro- 
 testant sects; which teaches them to believe, 
 that one infinite, eternal person of this trinity 
 died on the cross, to placate the infinite 
 vvrath-of another, eqally infinite person, and ren- 
 der him favourably disposed towards mankind. 
 Again; If th^doctrine of extreme unction is not 
 exactly the same, in name and form, among pro-' 
 testants, as with the papists, yet in substance 
 there is evidendy but a shade of difference; for 
 ^ appears still to be thought that the prayers of 
 a priest, at the last hours of life — espeoially if 
 6-
 
 66 M. RAVNLR's SLKMOrf. 
 
 procured at the dyinc: person's request, will, very 
 hopefully be effectual, in saving the immortal 
 spirit; not only from the pains of purgatory^ 
 but from that endless punishment which he is 
 told is his just desert; and which, but for that 
 timely ministerial service, or invocation, he would 
 inevitably have been condemned to suffer.* 
 
 And although popish infallability is not claim- 
 ed in express terms, yet it appears to be an opin- 
 ion, which prevails to a considerable extent, 
 and which the clergy are very much disposed to 
 encourage, that to be a member of an orthodox 
 churchy in full faith and communion, if it does 
 not infallably secure a person's eternal salvation, 
 it, however places him or her, in a pretty safe 
 state, in reference to another world. 
 
 The doctrine of fallen ans^els — a personal ma- 
 lignant devil, and endless hell torments, are held 
 in common by Roman Catholics, and by all that 
 are considered evangelical churches^nd denom- 
 
 *VVe are far from being opposed to ministeriitl visita- 
 tions of the sick — praying with theai, &c. Wo highly 
 approve of it. Not, however, to alarnM|he minds of the 
 sick and dying with fearful apprehensions of divine wrath 
 and vengeance in a future state ; but to assure them of 
 God's unchanging favor and goodness — to exhibit, in high 
 relief, the inestimable hopes and consolations of the gos- 
 pel of peace and salvation ; that, as the poet says — ^ 
 
 " Despair and anguish," may '' flee the struggling soul. 
 Comfort come down, the trembling wretch to raise. 
 And his last, faultering accents whisper — praise."
 
 M. ray.\f:r's slr.mo>^ 67 
 
 inntions, amons, proteslaiUs. No one, it is 
 thous^ln, can be a true orthodox christian, un- 
 less he has full Aiiih in the devi#ancl hell! 
 
 At the era of the Reformation, under Luther, 
 Cakin and others, it is certain that many gross 
 impositions, and shameful abuses, long practised 
 in the papal church, were detected, exposed, 
 and reformed; and many idle superstitions, — 
 unauthoriz<5d rites, and useless ceremonies, were 
 relinquished and discarded. And in that case 
 the reformers^ like the apostle in the text, were 
 accused, by the then generally supposed orthodox 
 priesthood, of bringing certain strange things 
 to the ears of the people, and of teaching new 
 doctrines, contraiy to the A)ng established faith 
 of the church — subvers^^e of all proper ecclesi- 
 astical authority, and of all order, morals, and re- 
 ligion. The cathf-j'ic clei-gy exerted all their 
 aulliority, and ^i1 their influence, to keep the 
 people from gc«ng to hear those heretical preach- 
 ers,' or rea'^'/ig ^^ny of their writings; telling 
 them that -^le'''^*^ ^^as the only true religion, hand- 
 ed dow» fi'om Christ and his apostles — that if 
 they departed from the faith and government of 
 th'^c church, they would incur the awful displeas- 
 jre and malediction of God, and Christ, and 
 the virgin Mary, and of all the saints and angels 
 in heaven — that the tremendous sentence of ex- 
 communication must be passed upen them, 
 which would be ratified in heaven, and seal
 
 68 M. rayner's sermon. 
 
 iheir eternal damnation, beyond tlie hope of 
 remedy! 
 
 My brethren,^ there any thin^ like this trans- 
 acted in the christian world in our day ? Of this 
 we shall now more particularly inquire. We 
 have not time to trace the history of events in 
 Christendom from the era of the Reformation down 
 to the present period. We will come immedi- 
 ately to the times in which we live' and to the 
 religious movements and operations of the pre- 
 sent day. 
 
 It is evidently, at present, a season of great 
 excitement, and ^f extraordinary exertion ; and, 
 thank God, of great religious inquiry and inves- 
 tigation also ; which 1-5 always aWke fatal io error 
 and superstition^ intoleiynce and hypocricy^ and 
 favorable to the cause of b;uth, and to the genu- 
 ine, rational, and liberal principles and practice 
 of Christianity ,--the pure, ger^rous, impartial, 
 and lieavenly religion of the gospc?^ 
 
 But is there any doctrine propco^atcd amons; 
 us at the present time, which, like thfr. preached 
 by St. Paul at Athens, is thought to be new and 
 strange 9 Yes, — of this you cannot be ign^i-ant; 
 and you anticipate me, and say, it is the docti^ne 
 of Universalism. True, my respected hear 
 ers, it is so ; this doctrine is looked upon by 
 many to be ahnost as new and strange, as was the 
 doctrine of '' Jesus and the resurrection" to the 
 Athenians. Whether it is, in reality a new doc-
 
 M. RAYNER's iERMO?f. 69 
 
 trine, will be an after inquiry. But as to its pro- 
 inulgatioji^ to any considerable extent, at least, 
 during several preceding ages, and also the age 
 in which we live, until very lately, — we ac- 
 knowledge it to be, comparatively, a.new doctrine. 
 
 A very different, and a very contrary doctrine, 
 has extensively prevailed — even the doctrine of 
 God's everlasting hatred and wrath, and his fixed 
 and unalterable determination, according to his 
 own good pleasure, to punish and torment a great 
 part of his own intelligent creation — his own 
 offspring, to all eternity ! We think this is the 
 strangest — the most unaccountable — and the most 
 absurd doctrine that ever was promulgated, or 
 that ever was proposed to the faith of rational 
 beings. And so it would certainly appear to all, 
 were it not that people have been familiarized to 
 it from childhood — have been trained up in it, as 
 a necessary part of education — as a most impor- 
 tant and salutary truth of the gospel revelation — 
 the revelation of " good tidings of great joy!" 
 
 The early seceders from the church of Rorne^ 
 appear to have considered it unnecessary to in- 
 quire concerning the validity of this doctrine ; 
 the doctrine of endless hell punishment ; but took 
 for granted that it was correct. And here, cer- 
 tainly, is a strange thing — they rejected the cath- 
 olic doctrine of purgatory, as an unfounded su- 
 perstition, but retained that, wfiich is a thousand 
 limes more inconsistent, incredible, and abhor-
 
 70 M. rayner's sermon. 
 
 rent — the doctrine of eternal torments. This 
 doctrine of popery, which the clergy of that 
 church found convenient, to keep the people in 
 awe, and subject them to their domination and 
 avarice, the Reformers appeared willing to admit, 
 and receive from them as true ! ! 
 
 The same cruel, and most irrational doctrine, 
 has since (we are persuaded, without much ex- 
 amination, or reflection) been admitted as correct, 
 by most denominations of professing christians. 
 This alone passes current, at present, as true 
 orthodoxy ; whilst the doctrine of God's impar- 
 tial, universal, and unchanging love — issuing in 
 the final salvation, holiness and happiness of all 
 mankind, is considered a new and strange doc- 
 trine, and a most alarming, demoralizing, and 
 dangerous heresy ! The c<fmmon opinion appears 
 to be, that for a person to hope and believe that 
 all his neighbours and fellow-creatures wifl be 
 saved as well as himself, and none of them, (to 
 borrow the language of the Catechism,) suffer 
 "the pains of hell forever," is a most fatal error, 
 and sufficient to seal his own eternal condemna- 
 tion ! 
 
 Universalism then, is said to be a new and 
 strange doctrine, and exceedingly pernicious. 
 But v/ho say this ? Are they those who have 
 carefully examined it, in its foundation, its super- 
 structure, and in all its bearings, its connections, 
 ind it< rostih, so tliat ihev fullv understand it ?
 
 M. RAYISER S bERMO^ 
 
 71 
 
 We think not. On the contrary, it is commonly 
 found, that those who speak the most against it, 
 and are its most violent opposers, are such as are 
 very ignorant of it, who have taken no pains to 
 investigate the subject, and who condemn It at 
 random, unheard, and w^ithout examination. 
 
 I hope I shall not be considered presump- 
 tuous, or uncharitable, when I say, (what I ex- 
 pect you will all allow^ to be true,) that the greatest 
 opposers of the doctrine of universal grace, and 
 of those who preach and propagate it, are our 
 brethren of the orlhodox clergy. They with one 
 consent, denounce the doctrine, and all who es- 
 pouse it ; and even excommunicate persons from 
 their churches, however moral and upright they 
 may be in other respects, if they shall dare to con- 
 fess their faith in it. And we expect, as people 
 gain more confidence, so as, without restraint, to 
 avow theii: real sentiments, this business of ex- 
 coinmunication will increase upon their hands ; 
 for it is well ascertained, from private acknowl- 
 edgements, that there are many universalists in 
 orthodox churches of different denominations. 
 
 But to return. — Concerning these grave and 
 reverend opposers of universalism, there is one 
 of two things which we are obliged to believe, 
 viz. — either that they are unacquainted with the 
 doctrine, or else that they afe not honest. We 
 should choosej,o believe the former ; but it is 
 certain that either one or the other of these prop-
 
 *I2 M. RArNLiR's ser:mo.v, 
 
 • 
 ositions is true ; because they generally, and 
 almost constantly, misrepresent the doctrine ; and 
 bold up in the place of it, to the view of their 
 hearers and readers, opinions and sciuiments as 
 held by us which we neither teach nor believe, 
 any more than they. Now we have no objec- 
 tion to their opposing, and poiuiing out the 
 errors of our doctrine, if they find them, and 
 believe them to be such. Nay, it is their duly 
 to do it. But let them do it fairly and honestly; 
 not by misrepresentation and abuse, not by call- 
 ing us infidels, deists, messengers of satan, &c.; 
 unless they show by proof and sound argument, 
 that ^ve justly merit such a charge. We too, 
 very freely point out, what we believe to be, 
 errors in other systems; but we do it by an ap- 
 peal to the scriptures, in contrast with their 
 avowed principles, as contained in their own ar- 
 ticles and confessions of faith; and we call upon 
 the people to hear^ examine, and judge for 
 themselves. But is this the course pursued by 
 the opposers of universalism? Do the clergy 
 advise their people to acquaint themselves with 
 the doctrine — and carefully to consider and 
 weigh the evidence and arguments, hoih for and 
 against it ; that they may form a deliberate and 
 enlightened opinion, and make a judicious deci- 
 sion in the case? 
 
 No, my hearers, you well know this is not 
 the course taken. On the contrary, the clergy
 
 :m. rayner's sermon. 73 
 
 declare the doctrine to be new and strange, and 
 10 be utterly false and ruinous, — wholly incon- 
 sistent and contradictory, and without any foun- 
 dation in the word of God: — and they wish the 
 people to take their word for all this, without 
 further inquiry, and with entire confidence in 
 their infallability. Nay, they admonish, and 
 warn them, not to look into the doctrine at all — 
 never to allow themselves to listen to one of its 
 preachers, nor go within the sound of his voice; 
 and never to read any books, pamphlets, or pa- 
 pers in favor of it, or which go to support and 
 defend it. 
 
 And in this, we acknowledge, they discover 
 much prudence, or rather, art and cunning; for 
 they well know that if people hear, and read, 
 and examine the doctrine for themselves, they 
 will find it to be very different from what they 
 often hear it described and represented by its 
 enemies : they know that they will find out that 
 universalism is not atheism or deism; — nor infi- 
 delity, in any of its forms or grades. True, 
 they will not find it neither, to be Calvinism, nor 
 arminianism, nor orthodoxy, as that term is now 
 generally understood and applied. But still they 
 will find, (as on due examination, has been uni- 
 formly acknowledged,) that the doctrine of im- 
 partial and universal grace and salvation, has 
 much reason, and very much scripture in its fa-
 
 74 M. rayner's srrmon, 
 
 vour; and that it is fonndrcl in the e'ernal prin- 
 ciples of goodness and benevolence, and in the 
 all-subduing — all-conquering energies of infinite 
 power, and of divine immutable love. 
 
 And now, my brethren, we inquiro, Is this 
 in reality, a nev\- and strange doctrine? Is it a 
 new and strange declaration, that the vSupreme 
 Being — the Creator of all things, possesses al- 
 mighty power? and that he will do ail his pleas- 
 ure ; and that his pleasure is, " that all shall be 
 saved, and come unto the knowledge of the 
 truth?" Is it a new and strange doctrine that 
 '* there is o«e" God, and but one? — For in re- 
 lation to this point, universalists are strictly uni- 
 tarians^ believing, with them, in the simple uni- 
 ty of the divine Being — God the Father. — But 
 we stop not here; we believe that this one God 
 is infinitely good — good to all — and that he will 
 be so forever. 
 
 We inquire then further — Is it a new and 
 strange doctrine to christians, that there is not 
 only one God — but that there is also " one 
 Mediator between God and men — the man 
 Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for 
 all, to be testified in due time?" — that he " tast- 
 ed death for every man," and is '' the propitia- 
 tion for the sins of the w'hole world?" And is 
 it Q new and strange doctrine, that " it pleased 
 the Father that in him (the Son — the Mediator) 
 should all fulness dwell; and having made peace
 
 M. RAYM::R b SERMON. 
 
 llirouoh the blood of his cross, by him lo re- 
 concile all things unto himself, by him, I say, 
 whether they be things in earth, or things in 
 heaven?" Is it a new doctrine that it is God's 
 "good pleasure, which he hath purposed in 
 himself; that in the dispensation of the fulness 
 of times he might gather together in one, all 
 tilings in Christ, botli which are in heaven, and 
 which are on earth, even in him"? Is it new 
 and strange to your ears, that " As in Adam all 
 die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" — 
 that '' Christ must reign till he hath put all ene- 
 mies under his feet" — that '' death, the last en- 
 emy shall be destroyed" — and that when all 
 tilings shall be subdued to God, '' then shall the 
 Son also himself be subject unto him that put 
 all things under him, that God may be all in 
 all — when death being " swallowed up in victo- 
 ry" — united, universal, and eternal thanks shall 
 be ascribed to God, '' who giveth us the victo- 
 ry through our Lord Jesus Christ" — Is it 
 
 But we must stop. — We could proceed very 
 long with such inquiries, founded upon express 
 declarations of scripture, which go the whole 
 length, and breadth, and depth, and height of 
 the doctrine of universalism — which is the doc- 
 trine of the "■ unsearchable riches of Christ." 
 
 We ask then, Is the doctrine which is so 
 clearly recognized — so expressly declared in the 
 iioly scriptures of divine inspiration — which is
 
 so consonant with the most exahed ideas of the 
 character and attributes of God — so agreeable 
 to the dictates of reason, and to the best fee}- 
 ings, affections, and wishes of mankind — and of 
 all benevolent beings: does this doctrine de- 
 serve to be considered, and called a netc and 
 strange doctrine, and a pernicious and deadly 
 heresy? No — surely no. It is as old as the 
 promise made to man in paradise — which in 
 substance was renewed to the patriarch Abraham, 
 and which has been confirmed and declared 
 " by the mouth of all God's holy prophets since 
 the world began." 
 
 And now, — that this heavenly, and soul cheer- 
 ing doctrine of good tidings, is spreading and 
 prevailing in every direction; and, to use the 
 figurative and elegant language of the prophet — 
 is causing 'Mhe wilderness and the solitary place 
 to be glad, and the desert to rejoice and blossom 
 as the rose," — distilling and diffusing its de- 
 lightful fragrance — Now, that it is making, its 
 way to the understandings and consciences of 
 men, and commending itself to their reason and 
 judgment, and to their best wishes and hopes — - 
 And now too, that it is proving so mighty, 
 through God, to the pulling down of strong 
 holds,- — -casting down imaginations — spoiling ec- 
 clesiastical principalities and powers, and suc- 
 cessfully warring against ''spiritual wickedness 
 in high places."— 'Seeing tlieoc movements and
 
 M. RAY.NEK S $LK.MO.\. 77 
 
 operations — too palpable to be concealed, — do 
 -any inquire and desire to know of us '' what 
 these things mean?" 
 
 We readily answer — we unhesitatingly declare 
 what we believe — what we are fully persuaded, 
 these things mean — viz, That the day of judg- 
 ment has come! that very day of judgment re- 
 ferred to by the Apostle, in the close of his 
 discourse in the Areopagus at Athens — even the 
 day — the period — in which God will judge — 
 that.is, rit/e, and govern the world in righteous- 
 ness by tliat man whom he hath ordained — not 
 by the servile principle of fear and terror — but 
 by the all-subduing influence — the all-conquer- 
 ing energy of ineffable compassion and kind- 
 ness — and almighty love — revealed and mani- 
 fested in the gospel of Jesus. And of this 
 glorious, triumphant, and universal judgment — 
 or REIGN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, by Christ, God 
 " hath given assurance unto all men — in that he 
 hath raised him from the dead" — "set him at 
 his own right hand" — "given him a nam© which 
 is above every name, that, in the name of Jesus 
 every knee should bow, of things in heaven and * ' 
 things in earth, and things under the earth, and 
 that every tongue should confess that Jesus 
 Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." 
 Amen — Hallelujah — Praise the Lord. 
 7"*
 
 SERMOjV 4* 
 
 BY THOMAS JONES. 
 The Gospel JMimstry. 
 
 the harvest tlraL ' f,,^ ^'i' """««"•«. the Lord af 
 harvest! "''''' '"""' '^°«'' l''''»«=rs into hb 
 
 vhln'Tp^nf '" '''! '■'"*; P^''<^«di"Sthe text, that 
 ear b'^V' *'"= mt,lt„udes ,vho attend;d to 
 thl r' '?' T^''^'' "''h compassion for 
 
 abioad as sheep having no shepherd. In this 
 to^^r'cb ,h^7'"''^'' "''''^'' J^^"^ -■- showed 
 in our dmne Lord those peculiar virtues which 
 
 he" es'tX,'" ^'","^1^'='-^' -^P-"-' 
 ine best affections of the liuman heart. 
 
 n»»!l "T-^'-T S"'en in the context of the 
 ^eed^ ,„ unudes who flocked to hear the teach! 
 
 ^^ec ,o ',r '^°1 "'"' "'^y "■'^^^ <■=•'"' i" re- 
 tC hev vv ■ '"'"'*' f ;™" ''^ 'heir bodies; and 
 that tliey were unsettled as to anv fixed senli-
 
 T. JONEo's SERMON. "79 
 
 ment which could give them real and permanent 
 comfort. Nor had they any guide who cared 
 for them, so as to lead them into the right paths 
 except the Lord Jesus. He is emphatically the 
 good shepherd who gave his hfe for the sheep, 
 and as such, he had compassion on the famished 
 multitudes. 
 
 It is worthy of notice, in this place, that Je- 
 sus pronounced a woe against the teachers of 
 his day — the standing order in the Jewish 
 church— saying, Woe unto you, lawyers, for ye 
 have taken away the keys of knowledge. Ye 
 enter not in yourselves; and those that were en- 
 tering in, ye hindered. If it be asked, how the 
 Jewish teachers did these things? the answer is 
 easy. By their traditions they took away the 
 true method of interpreting the scriptures; gave 
 the people a wrong understanding of the proph- 
 ecies, and thereby hindered them from entering 
 the gospel kingdom. A proverb similar to the 
 above, was uttered by the prophet Jeremiah, 
 chap, xxiii, ver. 1 — Woe be unto the pastors 
 that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pas- 
 ture, saith the Lord. This woe was pronounc- 
 ed against them because they scattered and de- 
 stroyed the sheep; nor was this all, — they with- 
 held from them the true bread, and forbid their 
 feeding in God's field of free grace. 
 
 Very suddenly our Lord changed the simili- 
 tude of sheep without a shepherd, to that of a
 
 so T. JO.NEs's SLKMO.N. 
 
 plenteous harvest lully ripe, wliere there were 
 but few laborers to gather it in. Amongst all 
 the masters in Israel, there was none found to 
 gather the people; to lead them, doctrinallj, 
 into the rich scriptiual comforts mentioned by 
 the holy prophets of Israel. 
 
 In prosecuting the subject of this discourse, 
 1 will speak 
 
 1. Of the plenteous harvest. 
 
 2. Of the few laborers. 
 
 3. Of the exhortation found in the text — 
 *' pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, 
 that he would send forth laborers into his har- 
 vest.'' 
 
 1. The plenteous harvest represented the 
 great multitudes of people which Jesus saw as 
 sheep without a shepherd, — having, indeed, a 
 spirit of inquiry; but as yet in ignorance. And 
 as Jesus is the same yesterday, to-day and for- 
 ever, we believe the ignorant multitudes have 
 his compassion still, and that he shows them 
 mercy. In the parable of the tares and the wheat 
 which Jesus put forth, the harvest is said to 
 mean the end of the world, i. e. age or dispen- 
 sation. The end of the world referred to the 
 time when the tares should be gathered out of 
 the wheat, and be burned. This was accom- 
 plished in the destruction of the Jewish hierar- 
 chy, temple and city. But in the text, refer- 
 ence is not had to time in particular, by fhe"
 
 T. JOJSES's SERMON. 81 
 
 same meta])hor (viz. br.rvest,) used; but to the 
 plenteous harvest of tlje people; of the com- 
 mon people, who heard Jesus preach gladly. In 
 i-eference to such people, Jesus, seeing them 
 flock to hear him, said, " The fields are white 
 already to harvest." Though very ignorant, 
 from lack of information, they were disposed to 
 inquire, and to ask, What is truth.'' This is the 
 first step towards obtaining * knowledge of the 
 tRith. If people will but inquire, they are 
 promised all necessary aid from on high, to as- 
 sist them in entering the gospel kingdom. 
 These ignorant people, in question, w^ere a part 
 of the plenteous harvest, which God had de- 
 signed to gather into the knowledge of life eter- 
 nal. Mankind at large, the equal offspring of 
 God, were given, being at first, earthly and mor- 
 tal, wiili the full design in God to be ultimately 
 gathered by him into the celestial state, as his 
 ^^ crop" and " plenteous harvest," sowed by 
 him in the earth. This was " the grace given 
 us in Christ Jesus, before the world began." 
 
 That God, the Creator, expected such a har- 
 vest from the beginning, we may conclude from 
 what Moses wrote. Gen. v. 1,2, " This is the 
 book of the generations of Adam: in the day 
 that God created man, in the likeness of God 
 created he him. Male and female created he 
 them; and blessed them, and called their name 
 Adam, in the day when they were created,"
 
 B2 T. JONESES SE-Jl.MOX. 
 
 From the first, God entertained a design in re- 
 lation to the posterity of Adam, whom he crea- 
 ted in his own image. The children of the 
 promise will, indeed, in the resurrection, make 
 a plenteous harvest! They are to be, for multi- 
 tude, as the stars of heaven, and as the sands 
 upon the sea-shore, innumerable. All the chil- 
 dren of Adam are also the children of God in 
 Christ Jesus. THfe heathen are to be his inheri- 
 tance, and the uttermost parts of the earth his 
 possession, in due form; and thougli many of 
 them may be ignorant, as were the scattered 
 sheep of the house of Israel, in the days of Je- 
 sus Christ upon earth, yet are they his harvest, 
 and are now being gathered in by the gospel dis- 
 pensation, to the knowledge of divine truth by 
 an arranged process. And at last they shall be 
 all gathered into the personal possession of im- 
 mortal glory in the celestial image. 
 
 Having, therefore, such a wide field before 
 us, such a plenteous harvest of our race to gadi- 
 er, doctrinally, into the hope of eternal life, we 
 are not afraid to preach the gospel freely and in- 
 definitely, lest we should preach it to reprobates. 
 No, indeed! for we do not believe God has any 
 reprobates. " All souls are mine; as the soul 
 of the Father, so also the soul of the son is 
 mine." Ezek. xviii. 4. God is the Father of 
 all; Jesus has died for all; the gospel promise of 
 ^reat joy was made for all people; and the com-
 
 T. Jones's skrmon. 8ci 
 
 mission of every christian preacher requires him 
 to preach the good tidings to " every creature" 
 in '' all the world." We therefore proclaim to 
 all the ever blessed message of grace and salva- 
 tion. 
 
 2. I was to speak of the laborers being few. 
 
 The laborers in this harvest are represented 
 as gathering; the multitudes of mankind into the 
 hope of eternal life. The laborers in this harv- 
 est by their doctrinal instructions, gather man- 
 kind into the hope of eternal life in their own 
 souls. We may observe, that the work of 
 these laborers is, not to scatter; not to destroy; 
 not to divide, except from error. The laborers 
 being few, refers to the time in which Jesus hv- 
 ed upon earth, when there were no instructors, 
 in real divine truth, in the house of Israel, sit- 
 ting in the seat of Moses. And Jesus predict- 
 ed that a time would come amongst his professed 
 followers, under the christian name, when their 
 teachers would take from them the bridegroom 
 (doctrinally,) and that they should then mourn. 
 Accordingly, when he was interrogated why his 
 disciples did not fast? he said, How can the 
 children of the bride-chamber fast, while the 
 bridegroom is with them? but the days will 
 come when the bridegroom shall be taken away 
 from them; then shall they fast in those days. 
 Such days have been; and such days are even 
 now experienced by many. The laborers in
 
 84 T. Jones's sermox. 
 
 the gospel harvest who do not tread down, de- 
 stroy and scatter, are but few compared with 
 the great mass around them. Few profess that 
 Jesus will save all that are found in a morally 
 lost state. Yea some who see the propriety of 
 this truth are afraid to confess it before men. 
 Even Chauncy and Huntingdon, such was the 
 state of public sentiment in their day, wrote it 
 only by the midnight lamp, leaving their writ- 
 ings or their names to come to the light only af- 
 ter they were beyond the reach of the hatred 
 and scorn of the world. But we, in this day, 
 have no just occasion of fear. We utter this 
 truth before the world, and publish it under the 
 broad light of the noon-day sun. 
 
 The work of these laborers in question, in 
 the text, is to gather, not to destroy any. For 
 who could bear to think that Jesus taught his 
 disciples to pray for laborers to help destroy 
 mankind ! 
 
 We will here take some notice of these few 
 laborers' work; which I will do by referring to 
 another passage. John iv. ^Q. He that reap- 
 eth receiveth wages, that both he that soweth 
 and he that reapeth may rejoice together. And 
 herein is that saying true — one soweth and anoth- 
 er reapeth. I sent you to reap that on which 
 you bestowed no (prior) labor. Other men 
 labored (at the husbandry,) and ye are entered 
 into their labors; to reap the crop which they
 
 85 
 
 sowed. God sowed men in the earthly state: 
 and the apostles were sent to gather mankind, 
 doctrinally, into ' the heavenly state, by the 
 pledge given of immortality . in Christ's resur- 
 rection. For such a doctrinal harvest of hope, 
 many appeared to be ready at the time of Christ 
 and his apostles. 
 
 Mankind are so constituted, that they are 
 always looking out for something better than 
 they possess. 
 
 " Hope springs eternal in the human breast ; 
 
 Man never is, but always to he blest." 
 
 ?or such an enjoyment by faith, man Was pre- 
 pared from the first by his Maker; and was 
 nade capable, also, of being baptized by the 
 Holy Spirit, by a new constitution, from mortal 
 tc immortal — -from earthly to heavenly. " We 
 ai3 God's workmanship." But the change of 
 C(nstitution, from mortal to immortal, from 
 earthly to heavenly, doth not take place in this 
 WDrld; but in the world to come. All the 
 ciange wrought in any in this world, is no more 
 tlan a moral or spiritual change of sentiments 
 aid affections, and conduct, when found errone- 
 OLs and immoral. For if any, like Timothy, 
 kn:)w the truth of the holy Scriptures from 
 childhood, they never needed any change of 
 semiment. And if their affections and conduct 
 are directed and influenced by their hope, they 
 need no moral change. All they need, is to 
 8
 
 86 T. JO>'E.s'hi SERMON. 
 
 grow in iho knowledge of tlio grace of Go(j, 
 and in moral purity and excellence. For be- 
 lievers are still mortal and earthly while in this 
 life, subject to thA same passions and tempta- 
 tions as other men. They have all the natural 
 tendencies and feehngs common to human na- 
 ture. But they are called to govern themselves 
 by their faith, upon earth, in word and deed, so 
 that they do no evil to. any, in any sense. 
 
 The '' other men" that labored, into whose 
 labors the apostles of Christ entered, were the 
 holy prophets, who searched what manner of 
 time the spirit of Christ which was in them, did' 
 signify, when it testified before hand the suffer- 
 ings of Christ and the glory that should folloTV., 
 The apostles, who saw the Son of God in flesh/ 
 were more highly favored under their dispensa/ 
 tion, than the prophets were under theirs. So 
 said their Lord — " Blessed are your eyes, for 
 they see ; and your ears, for they hear ; for I 
 say unto you, that many righteous men and king; 
 have desired to see the things which ye see, anc 
 have not seen them ; and to hear the things 
 which ye hear, and have not heard them." 
 
 The prophets predicted, what the apostles sa\r 
 fulfilled as witnesses, and preached to the world 
 as such. They preached, as their eyes w^ere 
 opened, the unsearchable riches of Christ ; that 
 God was no respecter of persons ; that the 
 Messiah was God's salvation unto the ends of
 
 T. JO>K!^'^j SEK3rO>'. 87 
 
 llic cartli ; that the forgiv^eness of sin was preach- 
 ed as wide as llie world ; that as certainly as we 
 have borne the image of the earthly here, we 
 shall hear the heavenly image in eternity ! 
 
 Will this developement of free grace be ob- 
 jected to, as removing the restraint of fear, aris- 
 ing from the danger of endless misery ? Let me 
 ask, wherefore did not all the fear of the past 
 ages of the papacy, correct the morals of those 
 ages ? For, surely, mankind were much more 
 wicked in those ages, than they now are. Wit- 
 ness the history of the tyrannies, massacres, bar- 
 barities, of the men of those times ; — their rage, 
 lust and general licentiousness. The doctrine of 
 a purgatory and of a possible eternity of tor- 
 ments in fire, did not sanctify them. History 
 bears a sorry testimony to the moral efficacy of 
 such a faith, in those ages when that faith was 
 the most strong and general amongst mankind. 
 
 Let mankind become fully persuaded, that 
 God, their Creator, is all love and goodness ; 
 yea, and that all his chastisements for iniquity 
 are indicted with a benevolent design ; and surely 
 such a noble hope will break up in them the 
 dominant force of temptation, and moral recti- 
 tude wnil become their delight; and iniquity of * 
 every kind will become their abhorrence. So 
 doih the grace of God, that bringeth sah ation, 
 feacli to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and 
 influence all, to wiuvn.i this grace appears, to live
 
 88 T. Jones's sermon. 
 
 righteously, soberly, and godly in this present 
 world. We believe and preach, the unbounded, 
 universal grace of God, to preserve ourselves 
 and others from all evil deeds. Grace, which 
 saith to every sinner, — ^' Thy sins be forgiven 
 thee," also enjoins, " go and sin no more !" 
 
 While we think God has implacable, vengeful 
 wrath, towards the sinner, so long shall we think 
 ourselves justified in hating implacably such as 
 we may deem worthy of cur displeasure, — hat* 
 ing their persons for the sake of their deeds. 
 But, according to the New Testament, no man's 
 person is to be the object of hatred, though his 
 deeds may be abhorred, and his person, if need 
 so require, be secured by the arm of the law, to 
 restrain his malignancy. Indeed, there is no 
 possibility of forgiving enemies — of rendering 
 blessing for cursing — but upon the principle of 
 God's infinite, universal grace and love. For 
 while we think, that there is one creature, in any 
 part of God's creation, which he hates, so long 
 shall we feel licensed to select for ourselves 
 some proper object of vengeance or abhorrence 
 amongst our race. But who does not know that 
 this practice would be in direct opposition to the 
 obvious doctrines and positive precepts of the 
 gospel ? But when we become fully persuaded, 
 that 
 
 " VVc cannot g'o 
 Where iinivcr!=:aJ love Piailcs not aroumV'
 
 ^^J T. JOKES 's SEIlMOi\. 89 
 
 tlieii we shall feel ourselves reproved Ibi- hatred, 
 ifwehaveit ; and shall feel disposed to surren- 
 der ourselves up to the truth of free grace, to be 
 governed morally by it in word and in deed. 
 And the enlarged compassion and good will, 
 which we feel for all mankind, will not make us 
 abhor iniquity less, but will inspire us the more 
 with the love of holiness. 
 
 3. I was to speak of the exhortation found in 
 the text, *' Pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the 
 harvest; that he would send forth laborers into 
 bis harvest." 
 
 To pray to, or petition. Almighty God, who 
 is infinitely wise and |»od, to do any thing for 
 ourselves or others, inay have the appearance of 
 inconsistency at first, in the minds of some who 
 have thought freely for themselves upon subjects. 
 For it is a given point, that God, our Maker, is too 
 wise to need any direction from us, and too good 
 to need any excitement from us. And, indeed, 
 if we think we know better than God, what is 
 best for ourselves, so that we can direct him 
 what is most suitable to be done for us, or oth- 
 ers, it is our folly. And if we think we can 
 move him by our requests, to be more gracious 
 towards us, more careful of us, or more kind to 
 us, than he is in and of himself, it surely is our 
 ignorance to think so. 
 
 Nevertheless, God indulges mankind, while 
 in this mortal state of trouble and suffering, to 
 8*
 
 90 T. JOi^Es's SEHMO.N. 
 
 pray or request liim, for ihemseives and others, 
 in subordination to his infinite wisdom and good- 
 ness. So we say, prayer is an indulgence God 
 lias granted man, for his gratification and comfort 
 upon earth. In this view of prayer, it is desire, 
 or desire brought into words ; and is no more in 
 its kind, than hunger and thirst are in their kind, 
 preparatory to our receiving food and drink with 
 zest. And we know that the God who made the 
 earth fertile, in order to the production of the 
 sustenance necGssary for man, also constituted 
 our craving appetites to receive it. So prayer, 
 or the spirit of prayer, is desire planted in man 
 by his Maker, roused ^ activity by circum- 
 stances. Prayer is desii^ secret or social. 
 
 The disciples were privileged to indulge and 
 cherish such desires, which would invigorate 
 them with fervency in their work. And such 
 desires in us now, in this day, would stir us up 
 to greater zeal and circumspection in religion. 
 
 The exhortation of the text suggests the ne- 
 cessity of such laborers, because " the harvest 
 is plenteous." Mankind are ripe and ready to 
 receive the information which the true gospel 
 gives, if not found under the influence of bigotry 
 and prejudice of another gospel — a gospel which 
 seeks righteousness, as it were, by works of 
 righteousness done by us. God who made the 
 eye to see, hath given the light to furnish vision. 
 And he w^ho gave man the power of believing
 
 T. Jones's sehmuN. 91 
 
 with joy in his name, upon knowing his charac- 
 ter hath also arranged that there should be mes- 
 sengers of grace and truth to give such informa- 
 tion as shall call out the heart into the act of 
 confidence in God. So " faith comeih by hear- 
 ing, and hearing by the word of God," which 
 word reveals God in his true character. 
 
 For this purpose laborers are employed, as 
 zealous friends of the gospel, to describe its na- 
 ture to the people, to be " helpers of their joy." 
 A pure and lofty zeal for the gospel must carry 
 them into the work ; and the same zeal must in- 
 spire them to action. They are the servants of 
 God, in Christ, and not of men. Their care is, 
 not to please men, but to preach the true gospel 
 of God our Saviour. 
 
 But, it is inquired, why cannot mankind, who 
 have the gospel — the New Testament in their 
 hands — do very w-ell without any such preach- 
 ers ? They may, indeed, if they have themselves 
 the light of evangehsts. But upon the same 
 grounds we may ask — Why cannot the commu- 
 nity, being taught to read, do without teachers 
 of any science whatever .'' arithmetic, navigation, 
 philosophy, astronomy, geography, music, &c. ; 
 for all these sciences are now written out and ex- 
 plained in books. Here it may be said, the in- 
 structions and explanations of teachers expedite 
 information. So Gospel laborers expedite moral 
 information, if they are <' apt to teach ;" if they
 
 92 T. Jo^Kb"s si:uMo>'. 
 
 are not, ibey lose iheir labor. One has one gil'i, 
 another has a different gift ; but few men have 
 many gifts. " There are diversities of gifts, but 
 the same spirit." 1 Cor. xii : 4. 
 
 In this place I take the occasion to add, that 
 it would be a benefit to speakers, and through 
 them an equal benefit to their hearers, that Gos- 
 pel messengers have nothing to interrupt their 
 work. 
 
 As all mankind are, by nature, ignorant ; and 
 are only made wise by information ; so are all 
 concerned for the good of their race, especially 
 parents and friends, to give the young informa- 
 tion concerning manners, civil decorum and hu- 
 man rights. And I think they should be equally 
 concerned to give them some rational ideas of 
 religion. The generations to come have nothing 
 to save them from the vortex of superstition, but 
 civil and moral light. Let us be desirous, that 
 such light may be clear, and pray that our teachers- 
 may be true hearts, without any hypocrisy ; in- 
 dulging none — no, not to save their lives 1 
 
 Finally : A Gospel preacher must be devoted 
 to the Gospel. He must have an ardent love for 
 its glorious doctrines, and a fixed regard for its 
 moral precepts. He must be no time-server; 
 no man-pleaser. He must serve Christ — fer- 
 vently and faithfully. May the Gospel of free 
 grace be our delight ; and its pure morals be our 
 practice and honor. Amew.
 
 m 
 
 SKllMON 5. 
 
 BY HOSEA BALLOU. 
 
 John xvii. part of lllh verse — Holy Fallier, keep 
 through thine own name those thou hast given me, that 
 they may be one, as weave. 
 
 Never did the speaker stand before a con- 
 gregation with more sensible impessions of the 
 importance of his subject. Never before did he 
 feel more sensibly the deficiency of his ability 
 to do justice to a portion of holy writ, selected 
 for the instruction of his audience. Under these 
 truly embarrassing circumstances, it will be pru- 
 dent in the preacher, to attempt no more than to 
 present the hearer with as concise, and as clear 
 a view of the most prominent particulars, sug- 
 gested by the text, as he is able to do, leaving 
 his attentive and discerning hearers, by careful 
 reflection, to carry out the several parts as far as 
 the strength of their discernment and understand- 
 ing may enable them. 
 
 Before we proceed to notice the petition con- 
 tained in our text, it may nut be improper Ui
 
 94 li. LALLOU's bLKMON. 
 
 lake a general vie\v of the prayer in which it is 
 found. In -the first ])etition, Jesus prayed for 
 hiniself, that the Fatlier might glorify the Son, 
 that the Son might glorify the . Father. In the 
 second petition, Jesus prayed for his disciples ; 
 emhj-acing in his prayer sundry particulars, one 
 of '.vhich is the subject of the present discourse. 
 In this pai't of his prayer he said, "I pray for 
 them ; I pray not for the world, but for them 
 which thou hast given me." In the third petition, 
 he said, ' Neither pray I for these alone, but for 
 them also whicii shall believe on me through their 
 word ; that they all may be one ; as thou. Fath- 
 er, art in me, and I in ihee ; that they also may 
 be one in us ; «Riat the world may believe that 
 thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou 
 gavest me I have given tliem ; that they may be 
 one, even as we are one ; I in them, and thou in 
 me, that they may be made perfect in one ; and 
 that the world may know that tliou hast sent me, 
 and hast loved them as thou hast loved me.' After 
 liius extending his prayer so as to embrace the 
 world, Jesus again prays for his disciples ; as if 
 ills lingering soul was loth to leave them. 
 
 The principal design we had in view, in taking 
 this general survey of the prayer of Jesus, re- 
 corded in this chapter, was to compare it with 
 tliose prayers which liis professed ministers are 
 so fref|v.ent and fervent in offering to the Fatlicr 
 cf our spirits, in our ijmc?. lu these prayers.
 
 H. RALLOU'S SERMON. 05 
 
 all ilieeiicr2;yof soitI, nil thn powers of eloquence, 
 and even of imagination, are employed to their 
 Htmost extent, not to petition for any of those 
 things embraced in the prayer of Jesus, but that 
 God may be so merciful as not to deliver over 
 his miserable, hell-deserving children, to that 
 everlasting condemnation which they justly de- 
 serve 1 In these prayers we discover a seeming 
 agony of desire, to move our Creator to the ex- 
 ercise of compassion, by the most fearful and 
 awful representations of the danger his creatures 
 are in, of falling under the vengeance of his wrath! 
 Every individual of this congregation is now 
 ■called on to compare all such prayers, which are 
 so frequently offered in our times, with the 
 prayer of our blessed Saviour. And when this 
 comparison is duly made, let the following ques- 
 tions be seriously considered : — 1st. Why did 
 not Jesus pray as these do ? If there were any 
 necessity of such prayers, it seems morally cer- 
 tain that Jesus would have so prayed. But such 
 prayers were neither offered by him, nor by his 
 disciples. 2nd. Why do not these professed 
 ministers of Jesus pray as he did ? The true 
 answer to this question will be found in the wide 
 difference, plainly discoverable, between the 
 means which Jesus relied on to bring the world 
 to the knowledge of his doctrine ; and those 
 which these ministers employ. The means on 
 which Jesus relied, by which to effect this be-
 
 96 n. BALLOU's SERMON. 
 
 iiign purpose, was the union and oneness of his 
 disciples, and of all believers, for which he 
 prayed, as we have noticed. But the means 
 which these ministers are exerting to proselyte 
 the world, are to frighten their hearers with the 
 most awful apprehensions of everlasting torments, 
 in the invisible world ; and thereby to induce 
 them to raise funds to bear their expenses in 
 frightening the rest of mankind ! In these means, 
 and in these alone, are they united ! 
 
 We come now to consider the occasion and 
 circumstances which were present with the Sa- 
 viour, when he offered the memorable prayer, 
 of which our text is a part. 
 
 He had, for the last time, left the temple of 
 God, in Jerusalem. He had brought his minis- 
 terial labours to a conclusion. Had warned the 
 Jews, for the last time, of the dire calamities, 
 w^hich their wickedness would bring upon them ; 
 and had denounced the woes which are recorded 
 in Matt, xxiii. and in other places in the New 
 Testament. Look, my friends, his back is 
 toward the temple ; his disciples are with him ; 
 they are descending toward the brook Cedron, 
 which they are to pass, on their w^ay to the gar- 
 den of Gethsemane, when he is to be betrayed 
 into the hands of his enemies. Before they 
 crossed this brook, they paused ; and Jesus of- 
 fered up the prayer, which we have been noti- 
 cing. The occasion was deeply interesting, and
 
 n. BALLOU's SERMON. 97 
 
 awfully solemn. The divine teacher knew what 
 was before him. The sufierings which he was 
 soon to endure, and the death he was to die, lay- 
 in open prospect. He was abovit to leave his 
 chosen, his beloved disciples, as sheep in the 
 midst of wolves. He knew^ the numerous temp- 
 tations which would try their fidelity, and he was 
 not ignorant of the human frailty of which they 
 partook. Who, among the wise aud prudent of 
 this world, would have thought of estabhshing a 
 despised religion, and of building a church of 
 permanent duration, by the use of such humble 
 means ! But wisdom divine, shines here. It 
 was the Father's good pleasure to give to this 
 little flock a kingdom. To this end their re- 
 maining united, in one, as the Father and the 
 Son are one, was indispensable And for this 
 the Redeemer prayed. 
 
 Why did he not apply to some literary insti- 
 tution, to some theological school, and engage 
 the authorities thereof to take his cause, his doc- 
 trine, and his disciples, under their care and pat- 
 ronage; and to lend the influence of learning to 
 the propagation and support of his religion.^ If 
 for no other reason, it was quite sufficient, that 
 no such school, or institution existed, in the 
 world, whose authorities were not opposed to 
 the doctrine and religion of Jesus» But we feel 
 no want of confidence when we say, that such 
 supports are far more efficient in aiding the doc- 
 9
 
 98 
 
 trincs of men ^ than in rendering assistance lo the 
 7visdom of Ged. 
 
 There were the mitred High Priest, and the 
 •whole estate of the elders of Israel ; why did 
 not Jesus intrust his cause, and the protection of 
 his disciples to their power and influence? That 
 w^as the very power, which he knew was then 
 putting forth all its energies to bring him to the 
 cross ; and he furthermore knew that it would 
 remain as inimical to his disciples, and to his re- 
 ligion as it then was to himself. 
 
 Why then did he not apply to the crown of 
 Csesar, and engage the protection of the Roman 
 authority in favor of the cause, which lay so 
 near his heart, and of his disciples, whom he so 
 affectionately loved ? That was the authority 
 which he knew would deliver himself unto death, 
 would bring his disciples to martyrdom, and per- 
 secute his religion throughout its empire. 
 
 Could he, with any more propriety, or confi- 
 dence intrust the union of his disciples, and the 
 success of his gospel to his disciples themselves, 
 by an appeal to their integrity ? Too well did 
 he know them, to put so sacred a deposit into 
 their hands. 
 
 On earth there was no power to w'hich he 
 could, with any confidence, confide the cause, 
 for which he had labored, and for which he was 
 going to Jay down his life. But to his Father in 
 heaven, lie knew he could appeal, and not be
 
 II. BALLOU's SERMOrs^ 99 
 
 denied. To his Father in heaven he prayed, 
 and was heard. 
 
 If there are any, who imagine that Jesus was 
 an impostor, we pray them to view him in the 
 situation in which he is here presented, and with 
 deliberate candor, say, if there be any history, 
 which gives an account of any other impostor hive 
 him. 
 
 Let us now pass under consideration the im- 
 portance of the union and> fellowship of the first 
 disciples of Jesus, for the purpose of establishing 
 the gospel in the world, and of laying a solid 
 foundation for his church, against which the gates 
 of hell, or all the power and pohcy of its ene- 
 mies could never prevail. 
 
 After the divine Master had left them, had 
 these disciples fallen into disunion ; had their 
 fellowship been quickly dissolved ; had they, in 
 their strife, endeavored to circumvent each oth- 
 er ; had they disagreed among themselves in 
 their doctrine ; had ihey broken into sects ; the 
 confusion of language at Babel would have been 
 harmony in comparison with what they would 
 have taught for Christianity ! The chief corner 
 stone would have been deserted, and no super- 
 structure would ever have been raised. There 
 would have been no necessity for the ecclesias- 
 tical authorities of the Jews to persecute and 
 waste the church ; for it would quickly have dc- 
 stroved itself. There would have been no oc-
 
 100 ii. BALLou's sf:rmo.n. 
 
 easion for the political powers and authorities to 
 raise the sword of persecution against a cause, 
 which its own professed friends were engaged, 
 with all the zeal of sectarian animosity, to bring 
 to naught. 
 
 This subject may be illustrated, by referring 
 to the declaration of American Independence. 
 After the venerable patriots, who framed that 
 sacred instrument, had given it their names, and 
 liad pledged their property, their lives, and thei? 
 sacred honor to support it ; had they, from what- 
 ever inducement, become disunited ; had they 
 employed their mighty minds, and all their in- 
 fluence and means, to frustrate each other's pur- 
 poses, those armies which were sent to extin- 
 guish that spark of liberty which was so alarming 
 to tyranny, would have had nothing to do, but to 
 look on, and see their work accomplished, by 
 the dexterous hands of its professed friends. 
 But it is to the union, which these champions of 
 political liberty maintained, and to the concentra- 
 tion of dieir influence, means, and exertions, 
 which we look as the rock, which broke the 
 mighty waves, driven by the storm of war to in- 
 gulph forever the infant republic. 
 
 The union, the oneness of the disciples of Je- 
 sus was certainly not less indispensable to the 
 establishment of Christianity in the world, than 
 was the union of our political fathers, for the de-
 
 11. BALLOU's SERMON. 101 
 
 fence of our rights, and the permanence of our 
 independence. ^« 
 
 The subject under consideration may be fur- 
 ther illustrated, by an extension of the compari- 
 son we have used. Since the establishment of 
 our national independence, and the due organiza- 
 tion of our federal government, we have witnessed 
 serious political divisions. Systematically or- 
 ganized parties have several times arisen. Par- 
 ties in politics have been loud, persevering, and 
 even vehement against each other ; and have 
 strongly maintained widely different opinions 
 concerning men and measures. But do these di- 
 visions endanger our independence, or our na- 
 tional existence ? We trust not. But w^hy ? 
 Because the foundation remains firm and immov- 
 able ; and all parties look to it, and refer to it ; 
 and all parties will defend it. The spirit of union 
 still lives, and we trust it will live, until the prin- 
 ciples it has supported in our happy country shall 
 universally prevail, to the destruction of tyranny, 
 and the liberation of the human race. 
 
 Notwithstanding the seeming opposition of po- 
 litical parties, now existing, in our republic, 
 should a design be formed by a foreign power 
 to wrest the boon of liberty from us, and subject 
 us to arbitrary power ; should the fleets of such 
 an enemy appear in our waters, and his armies 
 attempt to land on our shores, we should soon 
 see the American standard unfurled, and all
 
 102 H. BALLOU's SERMON. 
 
 eyes directed to the E Pluribus Uiuiiii, — bignifi- 
 cant of a«^|iiited people. 
 
 Like what we have noticed in our national 
 concerns, we learn, by history, that after the 
 apostolic age of the church, various and conflict- 
 ing doctrines were introduced ; divers sects 
 arose ; sectional interests obtained their respect- 
 ive votaries, and much contention rent asunder 
 those who ought to have strove for the unity of 
 the spirit, in the bonds of peace. And the pres- 
 ent condition of the great christian community 
 presents an aspect which indicates very little of 
 that sacred union, in which the Saviour prayed 
 that his disciples might be kept. But is Chris- 
 tianity in danger of being overthrown, by these 
 divisions ? We trust not. Why ? Because the 
 foundation remains ; and we believe it will re- 
 main forever. All sects and denominations of 
 christians look to it ; all refer to it ; and all will 
 endeavor to support it. Wlioever attempts to 
 demolish Christianity, or to remove the foun- 
 dation thereof; let his philosophy be ever so 
 subtle ; his reasoning ever so plausible ; or his 
 attacks ever so bold and daring ; will be met 
 directly on the foundation of the apostles and 
 prophets, Jesus Christ being the chief corner 
 stone. 
 
 We may now direct our inquiries to an inves- 
 tigation ol the means, by which Jesus prayed 
 his disciples might be kept united ; "- Holy Fa-
 
 H. BALLOU's SERMON. 103 
 
 ther, keep through thine own name, those thon 
 hast given nie, that they may be one, as we are." 
 It was the name of the Father, through, or by 
 which Jesus prayed that his disciples might have 
 their union maintained. It is evident that Jesus 
 meant the same by name, as he did by word. 
 See verse 6th of the chapter in whicli our text si 
 recorded : " I have manifested thy name unto 
 the men which thou gavest me out of the world ; 
 thhie they were, and thou gavest them me ; and 
 they have kept tliy wordy Verse 8th — ' For I 
 have given unto them the words which thou 
 gavest me ; and they have received them.' 
 Verse 12th — 'While I was with them in the 
 world 1 kept them in thy name.' Verse 14th — 
 ' I have given diem thy word."* Verse 26lh — 
 * I have declared unto them thy name.^ To 
 take up time in proving that by the name of his 
 Father, Jesus meant the doctrine whicli he was 
 sent to preach, seems quite unnecessary, as it is 
 presumed no one doubts it. 
 
 We now find a subject before us of immense 
 moment ; a subject concerning which many con- 
 troversies have been carried on in the church, 
 for ages, employing all the talent and learning, 
 which the schools could bring to the contest. 
 Numerous creeds have been drawn up by coun- 
 cils, venerable, in the world's estimation, for 
 their profound learning, deep study, and great 
 piety. These icibC productions have widely
 
 10 i U. liALLOC's SEKMO^^ 
 
 varied from each oilier ; and generally contain 
 the greatest contradictions in themselves. So 
 deep and profound have been their mysteries, 
 that the learned doctors of the church have found 
 it necessary to write voluminously, to explain 
 them to the common people ; but the common 
 people can no better understand these explana- 
 tions, than they can the contradictions in the 
 creeds themselves. 
 
 We certainly owe it to our subject as u ell as 
 to ourselves, to ask, why these numerous, and 
 conflicting, and contradictory creeds, have been 
 written. Was it to make divine truth plainer 
 than It is as expressed in the words which the 
 Father gave to the Son, and which the Son 
 gave to his disciples ? If the creeds which men 
 have written, make the doctrine of die Saviour 
 no plainer, no easier to be understood, than do 
 the words of Jesus, there seems to be no need 
 of their having been written at all. 
 
 It is a fact, which ought to be seriously re- 
 garded, that the example of writing creeds was 
 never set by Jesus or his apostles. Yet no au- 
 thor ever expressed a single tenet more plainly 
 than he expressed all which is necessary lor us 
 to believe. Do we desire to know the disposi- 
 tion of our heavenly Father towards us; and 
 our duty to each otiier ? And do we desire to 
 understand the real difference between what the 
 wisdom of God teaches on these ini|)ortani points,
 
 II. BALLOU's SERMON. 105 
 
 and that which is taught hy man's imperfect wis- 
 dom ? All this we have in the Ibllowing words : 
 " Ye have heard that it hath been said, thou shalt 
 love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy : but I 
 say unto you, love your enemies, bless them 
 that curse you, do good to them that hate you, 
 and pray lor them that despitefuUy use you, and 
 persecute you ; that ye may be the children of 
 your Father which is in heaven : for he raaketh 
 h\^ sun to rise on the evil, and on the good, 
 and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. 
 For if ye love them that love you, w^iat reward 
 have ye ? do not even the publicans the same ? 
 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye 
 more more than these ? do not even the publi- 
 cans so ? Be ye, therefore, perfect, even as 
 your Father which is in heaven is perfect.' 
 
 If Jesus had intended to express the univer- 
 sal love of God to mankind, and the impartial 
 operations of that love, how could he have ex- 
 pressed it more plainly, than he did in the pas- 
 sage just quoted ? And who can doubt, for one 
 moment, that it was the purpose of the divine 
 teacher to enforce the duty of our loving all men, 
 and of doing good to all, in imitation of the con- 
 duct of our heavenly Father ? Let us further 
 ask ; if Jesus had been as careful to guard his 
 hearers against the doctrine of God's universal, 
 impartial goodness, as our clergy now are, could 
 lie have njade use of more dangerous compari-
 
 106 II. ballul's slk-MO.\. 
 
 sons than he did ? Rain and sunshine ! What 
 preacher ever made use of these to demonstrate 
 his doctrine of partial sah'ation ? 
 
 But it may be asked if Jesus did not teach 
 the doctrine of tlie resurrection of the human 
 race, and the nature of man's constitution in the 
 future state ? He surely did. And on this sub- 
 ject he was as plain and unequivocal as he was 
 on those points we have just noticed. To the 
 Sadducees; who endeavored|to,ij^ei'plex the SL|b- 
 ject of the resurrection, Vvith a question, which 
 they applied accordmg to their views of analogy, 
 Jesus replied ; ' Ye do err, not knowina; the 
 Scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the 
 resurrection they neither jnarry nor are given in 
 marriage ; but are as the angels of God in heav- 
 en.' This is the substance of all that Jesus 
 taught concerning the resurrection, and man's 
 future state. The positive certainty of the res- 
 urrection God confirmed, in that he raised up 
 Jesus from the dead. 
 
 It is quite evident, that if the disciples of Je- 
 sus continued steadfast in the belief of God's 
 universal, impartial favor towards all men ; and 
 in the belief that God had raised their master 
 and leader from the dead, they were kept through 
 the name or doctrine of God, and were one, as 
 Jesus praj'ed. But had these disciples lost their 
 confidence in either of those points of faith, they 
 would have discontinued their discipleship' at
 
 107 
 
 ihe same lime. Whenever men believe that 
 our Father in heaven does not love all men, 
 they will show their faith by their works ; they 
 will become hateful and hating one another. 
 And it is morally certain that if the disciples 
 had not continued confident of the truth of the 
 resurrection, they would not have continued to 
 preach it, at the constant hazard of their lives. 
 Thus much it seemed proper to say on the 
 subjectof the doctrine of Jesus; but we have 
 no occasion to enlarge upon it. In the discour- 
 ses, delivered on this occasion, extensive and 
 critical examinations have been ably and suc- 
 cessfully employed, to elucidate the truth as it 
 is in Jesus. But before we take leave of this 
 department of our subject, we must be indulged 
 in noticing an objection, which our brethren, 
 who oppose the doctrine of universal, impartial 
 goodness, constantly reiterate in our ears. 
 This objection contends that the doctrine we 
 preach, as it holds up no state of everlasting tor- 
 ment, in the future world, has not terror enough 
 in it to prevent people from indulging m sin ; 
 and as it teaches that all the human family will 
 eventually, by the favor of God alone, be re- 
 ceived to the everlasting enjoyments of immor- 
 tality ; it does not ofler a suihcient reward to in- 
 duce the heart to the exercise of love to God 
 and to our fellow creatures. If we have stated 
 this objection in different words from those the
 
 lOS 11. BALLOU^S SERMON. 
 
 objector would use, we feel confident that noth- 
 ing more is embraced in the form, in which we 
 have stated it, than he intends by the objection. 
 In order to pay a suitable and proper attention to 
 the objection now before us it may be necessary 
 to be a little more familiar with our reverend and 
 pious objector, and with his usual manner of 
 treating these things, than is altogether agreeable 
 to ourselves. And we are not without our fears 
 that some offence may, unintentionally, be occa- 
 sioned. We will, however, proceed, and sup- 
 pose a single case, in order to keep our thoughts 
 from diverging from the subject. And that our 
 selection may be respectable, and sufficiently 
 commanding, we will choose a pious, learned 
 Doctor of Divinity. This is our object. His 
 objection we have just stated. Now we are not 
 about to engage in any dispute with this venera- 
 ble opposer ; we are going to put him to test the 
 strict propriety and weight of his objection to 
 the final salvation of all men. 
 
 This reverend divine has, what the world 
 calls, an excellent wife. Such is her character 
 as a wife, a mother, a friend and neighbor, that 
 she is highly and justly esteemed by all who 
 know her. But, in the opinion of her reverend 
 husband, she is in her native, sinful, unconverted 
 state. By some means, concerning which we 
 have not now time to inquire, she does not be- 
 lieve the creed of hor husband. Being benevo-
 
 109 
 
 lent and kind herself, she does not believe that 
 her Creator will finally prove to be unmerciful 
 to any. The awful hell, which her husband 
 holds up to his hearers, for the purpose of indu- 
 cing them to become pious, she is inclined to dis- 
 beheve. She loves and adores her God for his 
 goodness ; but has no fear of hell. Her hus- 
 band endeavors to dissuade her from her dan- 
 gerous errors ; warns her to flee from the divine 
 vengeance, and seek religion ; tells her she is in 
 danger, every moment, of falling into the bottom- 
 less pit of hopeless ruin ; prays God to regene- 
 rate his poor, ungodly wife, and snatch her as a 
 brand from the burning. But all his entreaties, 
 persuasions, ihreatenings and prayers avail noth- 
 ing. They thus live on together, through this 
 brief moment of mortal existence, and slide into 
 the house appointed for all who live. 
 
 The next scene that opens, according to our 
 objector's doctrine, presents us with this man 
 and his wife at the bar of God, in the day of 
 judgment. According to our objector's doctrine, 
 and according to his objection against universal 
 salvation, what does he now expect ? Certainly 
 he expects to be received into heaven and ever- 
 lasting bliss ; and to see his beloved wife, the 
 modier of his darling children, and whom he so 
 faithfully warned, and for whom he so earnestly 
 prayed, depart into everlasting darkness, and 
 
 10
 
 110 H. EALI.Or's SERMON. 
 
 misery never ending ! Here let us pause for a 
 moment, and suppose that the Judge of all the 
 earth is pleased to condescend to converse with 
 this good man, as he did with Abraham of old. 
 The Judge asks our objector if he believes that 
 his wife is to be sent away into endless torments? 
 He answers in the affirmative, with firmness. 
 The Judge informs him that his mercy will not 
 consent to make the work of his own hands for- 
 ever miserable. Our objector grows uneasy, 
 and asks if divine justice does not require her 
 eternal ruin ? He is informed that there is no 
 unmerciful justice in heaven ; and that it best 
 suits the goodness of the Creator, to receive 
 them both to the enjoyments of everlasting life. 
 Our objector now expostulates against such clem- 
 ency. He urges that there is injustice in such 
 proceedings ; and that he is not dealt with ac- 
 cording to his creed. He says that for many 
 years of his life, in the mortal state, he lived pi- 
 ously for fear of eternal damnation ; and that he 
 also loved God and all mankind, expecting to be 
 rewarded therefor with eternal bliss ; that he 
 loved his ungodly wife and treated her kindly for 
 fear of hell ; and that he prayed for her salvation 
 in expectation of an adequate recompense ; but, 
 says he, if I had known all this I never would 
 have been pious a single day ; I would not have 
 loved God nor my fellow men ; no, nor would I 
 have treated mv wife with kindness, or ever of-
 
 n. UALLOU's SERMON. Ill 
 
 fered a single prayer for her salvation. And 
 now, if there be any convenient place for me, I 
 will retire from such society. 
 
 My respected auditors, surely the solemnity 
 of this subject cannot possibly induce a smile. 
 No : You did not smile at the subject ; but at 
 the ridiculous folly of the objection. And now, 
 my kind hearers, let me earnestly request you to 
 keep in your minds the objection we have just 
 brought before you ; and whenever you hear 
 those who make pretensions to piety and reli- 
 gion, bring this objection against the doctrine of 
 universal goodness and mercy, carry them, in 
 your minds, to the bar of God, and leave them 
 there to murmur at the goodness of God. 
 
 We need to say but little on the nature of the 
 oneness, or union, in which Jesus prayed that 
 his disciples might be kept, as it is clearly de- 
 fined in the petition. It is such a oneness as 
 exists between the Father and his Son Jesus. 
 We should egregiously miss our way, should we 
 wander into the winding and perplexing laby- 
 rinths of what has been called the union of the 
 holy trinity, in order to become acquainted with 
 the union which subsisted among the blessed 
 Apostles. In the prayer where our text is found, 
 Jesus says to the Father, ' As thou hast sent me 
 into the world, even so have I also sent them 
 into the world.' The Father sent the Son to 
 be th9 Saviour of the world. The Son sayg,
 
 112 H. BALLOU's SER.MON. 
 
 ' I came down from heaven, not to do mine own 
 will, but the will of him who sent me.' Be- 
 tween the Father and the Son there is manifest- 
 ed a nnion of will and of purpose ; a union of ef- 
 fort and perseverance. This is the union in 
 which the disciples of Jesus were kept, and by 
 which they were enabled to follow the footsteps 
 of their divine Master, and to establish his cause 
 in the world, on a foundation which will never 
 be removed. 
 
 In bringing our subject and labors to a conclu- 
 sion, my brethren, who are united in the faith of 
 our heavenly Father's impartial salvation, and 
 especially you, my brethren in the ministry of 
 this abundant g.race, will indulge your speaker in 
 calling your most serious attention to the impor- 
 tance of maintaining, among ourselves, that union 
 and fellowship, which alone can make us the 
 happy instruments of extending the influence of 
 the gospel in our times, and by our exertions. 
 That we may be suitably, and effectually incited 
 to this paramount duty, let us always keep in 
 mind this petition of our divine Master, which 
 we have had under consideration. Let us at all 
 times direct our thoughts to him who so ar- 
 dently prayed that his disciples might remain 
 united, by the power of that holy doctrine which 
 he had delivered to them, as chosen witnesses ; 
 for them to promulgate to the world ; and for 
 the establishment of which, both he and thev di-
 
 H. BALLOU'S SERMorf. 113 
 
 reeled all their exertions, and devpted themselves 
 to shameful mockings, and persecutions, and 
 even unto death. 
 
 Our religious opposers would greatly rejoice, 
 and would be much encouraged, could they see 
 us arrayed in opposition against each other. 
 But while we remain united, and stand fast in 
 the name of the Lord, one will be able to chase 
 a thousand, and two will put ten th'Cusand to 
 flight. Surely we have enemies enough to con- 
 tend with. Let the banner of our faith be dis- 
 played ; let our E Pluribus Ununi, be kept in 
 constant view, and show to the world that we 
 are one. 
 
 Did your brother, who now addresses you, 
 know that this would be the last opportunity al- 
 lowed him to give you advice, and surely he 
 knows not the contrary, there is nothing, to 
 which he could call your attention, which is of 
 greater moment, than the keeping of the unity of 
 the Spirit, in the bonds of peace. Whatever 
 sacrifice individuals may find it necessary to 
 make, for the preservation of union and harmo- 
 ny in the circle of brethren, let it be made, 
 should it take the last shilling from the brother 
 of the humblest circumstances, or from himof 
 the largest income. What is all the world, my 
 brethren, without the spirit of union and broth- 
 erly love, which gives it all its value ? 
 10*
 
 114 H. BALLOU'S SERMON. 
 
 Let US all un^e, my brethren, in lifting up our 
 hearts to our heavenly Father, as Jesus did, and 
 pray that through his name we may remain one. 
 
 Amen.
 
 SERMOK 6. 
 
 BY CLEMENT F. LEFEVRE. 
 
 Hebrews xii. 1, 2. Wherefore seeing we also are 
 compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us 
 lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily 
 beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set 
 before us : Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of 
 our faith : who for the joy, that was set before him, en- 
 dured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at 
 the Tight hand of the throne of God. 
 
 The Apostle in the previous chapter had been 
 introducing a list of worthies, whom the opera- 
 tive principle of a genuine and hving faith, had 
 armed with power, of a character almost super- 
 human. The sufferings of these martyrs in the 
 cause of truth are almost unparalleled in his- 
 tory, and can only be equalled by that greatness 
 of soul and fidelity of purpose by which they were 
 sustained. What a lively picture of intense per- 
 secution does the apostle spread before our eyes ! 
 ^ ' They had trials of cruel mockings and scourg- 
 ings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonments; 
 they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were 
 tempted, were slain with the sword, they wan-
 
 116 c. 
 
 dered about in sheep-skins and goat-skins ; be- 
 ing destitute, afflicted, tormented, (of whom the 
 world was not worthy) they wandered in deserts 
 and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the 
 earth." But how insufficient were these san- 
 guinary measures to arrest the progress of divine 
 truth ! How puny and feeble does diat arm ap- 
 pear which raises itself against Him, who " holds 
 the winds in his fist and weighs out the moun- 
 tains in his balance." The very means which 
 the persecutor uses to extinguish the rising flam.e, 
 controlled by Him, who does all things after the 
 counsel of his own will, only makes it burn the 
 brighter. Hence we read that these faithful ser- 
 vants "subdued kingdoms, wrought righteous- 
 ness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of 
 lions : quenched the violence of fire, escaped 
 the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made 
 strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight 
 the armies of the aliens." 
 
 How excellent, how powerful is a living faith! 
 how invincible is that soul, which is imbued with 
 it ! It sinks under no sufferings — it yields to 
 no temptations — it bends to no circumstances — 
 force cannot subdue it — flattery cannot circum- 
 vent it — the storms of adversity beat upon it and 
 it remains uninjured — the sunshine of prosperity 
 surrounds it with its glittering pageantry and it 
 remains incorrupt — its eye cannot be diverted 
 from the bright work on which it is fixed — itg
 
 c. F. lefevre's sermon. 117 
 
 thoughts cannot be beguiled, from the cause in 
 which it is engaged — its hand cannot be restrain- 
 ed from labor in the work — its success is com- 
 mensurate with its steady purpose — the universe 
 of mind confesses, its sway — the valhes of hu- 
 man degradation - are exahed by the excellency 
 of its object — the mountains of pride and ambi- 
 tion are removed or prostrated, and it erects its 
 towering monument of true glory on the wreck 
 of persecution, ignorance, cruelly and error. 
 
 The apostle having thus introduced us to the 
 martyrs in the cause of truth, and having shown 
 that the sincerity of their faith and fidelity to their 
 puipose, were the great moving principles of 
 their actions, proceeds to recommend their ex- 
 ample to his beloved brethren, as worthy of 
 their devoutest imitation. " Wherefore, seeing 
 we also are compassed about with so great a 
 cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, 
 and the sin that doth so easily beset us, and let 
 us run with patience the race that is set before 
 us." An evident allusion is here made to the 
 Olympic games, and the exertions which the dis- 
 ciples of Christ were to make, and the cause in 
 which they were embarked, was aptly figured 
 forth by the intense endeavors which the " Ago- 
 nistee" or contenders in the foot-race made, to 
 reach the destined goal. They are represented 
 as being animated in their undertaking from the 
 consideration that the eyes of the principal men.
 
 118 c. F. lefkvre's sermon. 
 
 of the country^ and a crowd of spectators were 
 fixed upon them ; and by this they were induced 
 to make the most extraordinary efforts. Before 
 entering on this race, they would lay aside every 
 v/eight that might impede them in iheir progress, 
 and with patience and perseverance diligently 
 pursue their course. Such was the image which 
 the apostle had in view ; and how forcible, ap- 
 propriate, and instructive was the selection ! If 
 w'e call to mind the period in which this senti- 
 ment was penned, we cannot but be struck wiih 
 the fitness of its application. A few dauntless 
 and intrepid souls had entered upon a ministry, 
 against which were combined the wealth, the 
 power, and the learning of the /vorld. They 
 had not merely to wrestle against flesh and blood, 
 but against dominions and powers, and spiritual 
 wickedness in high places. They had to con- 
 tend with deep rooted prejudices, long-cherished 
 opinions, and the arm of civil power. As Re- 
 formers they were sure to experience contumely 
 and reproach — as innovators^ they would come 
 in contact with the bigotry of the ignorant, and 
 the intolerance of the interested. How neces- 
 sary was it, then, that in imitation of the antago- 
 nists in the race, they should lay aside every 
 weight, divest themselves of every incumbrance, 
 that wealth or interest, power or popularity might 
 lay in their way, and with a single eye, a firm 
 step, and an unwavering mind, patiently and per-
 
 c. F. lefevre's sermon. 119 
 
 severing!}' pursue that course which would lead 
 to true glory. There is an expression here in- 
 troduced by the apostle, which demands a pass- 
 ing notice, namely — "the sin which doth so ea- 
 sily beset us." There is in every man some 
 prevailing passion against which he has to con- 
 lend with especial diligence. It is one that ea- 
 sily or readily besets him, and would entice him 
 from that path wnich duty has prescribed ffe the 
 direct line of conduct. It is only necessary for 
 a man to examine himself to find out the truth of 
 this remark. Some are diverted from the path 
 which judgment dictates, by sloth ; some lose 
 sight of the object by being blinded with pas- 
 sion ; some have ruined the best cause, by inde- 
 cision of conduct; intemperance, and "zeal 
 without knowledge" has buried truth for ages ; 
 but whatever the prevailing passion may be, that 
 is hostile to the cause, must be sacrificed. The 
 besetting sin, whether it be constitutional or ha- 
 bitual, must be overcome, and all the energies of 
 the soul, the talents of the mind, the powers of 
 the body, be devoted to the great cause in which 
 it is engaged. If we should experience any dif- 
 ficulty in ascertaining where our " weak spot" 
 lies, let us consult either an honest friend, or an 
 avowed enemy, and we shall not long remain in 
 the dark, for although men are sometimes at a 
 loss to see their own failings, they never find any
 
 K>0 c. 
 
 difficulty in discovering those of tlieir neighbor's. 
 The language, then, of the apostle might very 
 properly thus be paraphrased. " Wherefore, 
 seeing the miracles which have been wrought by 
 faith in the mind, and fidelity in the execution, 
 and being surrounded by such a host of witness- 
 es, who have travelled the same path of glory, 
 let us, in imitation of them, lay aside every thing 
 that fflay divert us from otir purpose, and subdu- 
 ing every propensity, especially that to which 
 we are naturally or habitually addicted, let us 
 pursue the course of our ministry with patience, 
 perseverance, fidelity and fortitude." 
 
 As if the apostle had not sufficiently stirred up 
 the minds of those to whom he addressed him- 
 self, to prosecute the work of righteousness and 
 truth, he directs their eye to that great Examplar, 
 whose presence might act as inspiration, and 
 whose conduct afforded a perfect pattern for all 
 that is glorious and excellent. " Looking unto 
 Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who, 
 for the joy that was set before him, endured the 
 cross, despising the shame and is set down at the 
 right hand of the throne of God." This allusion 
 was most happy and significant. The word 
 which is here rendered author^ signifies in the 
 original language, captain, or leader. Thus 
 were the minds of these Hebrew christians led 
 at once to contemplate the character of the great 
 " captain of our salvation." He w^as tjpe author,
 
 c. p. lf.fevrfJs sermon. 121 
 
 the founder of tbfe glorious system in which we 
 rejoice ; and true to the cause, true to the har- 
 dy band of followers, who were engaged with 
 him, he valiandy opposed the error and cruelty 
 that were in the world, died in the great work of 
 mental emancipation, and left the astonished 
 multitude to exclaim — this was indeed the very 
 Christ — the Saviour of the world. 
 
 The particular reference which the apostle 
 makes to the object which Christ had in view, 
 and which he notices under the expression of 
 ^' the joy which was set before him," will very 
 naturally lead us to inquire what was the joy of 
 Christ ? In answer to this the Scripture fur- 
 nishes us with a most satisfactory reply. The 
 joy of Christ was to do the will of his heavenly 
 Father — it was his meat and drink ; " in the vol- 
 ume of the book it is written of me, I delight to 
 do thy will, O my God, yea thy law is within 
 my heart." Whatever, then, might be the will 
 of God, that will was tjie joy that was set before 
 Christ. This then provokes the enquiry, what 
 was the will of God in the advent of the Re- 
 deemer ? Was it a partial display of goodness, 
 or one of a universal character ? We do not 
 here inquire what will be the result ; we leave 
 that for future consideration ; but the question to 
 which our inquiries tend, is simply this : was 
 the design of God in sending his Son into the 
 world, to extend his redeeming mercies to all, 
 
 11
 
 122 r. F. lefpvPf/s sermon. 
 
 or only to a select number .^ We think theie 
 can be no difficulty in answering this question. 
 Shall we consult the promises ? Then shall we 
 find that in Christ, the seed of Abraham, all the 
 families of the earth should be blessed. Shall 
 we look to the prophecies ? behold they are 
 equally explicit. " He shall finish transgressions, 
 make an end of sin, and bring in an everlasting 
 righteousness." " The voice of him that crieth 
 in the wilderness. Prepare ye the way of the 
 Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for 
 our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and 
 every mountain and hill shall be brought low, 
 and the crooked ways shall be made straight, and 
 the rough places plain, and the glory of the Lord 
 shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it togeth- 
 er, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.'' 
 If we have any unfaithful doubts, any unbeliev- 
 ing fears, let us apply to the Prince of peace 
 himself. " This is the will of him that sent me, 
 that of all that he hath given me, I should lose 
 nothing, but raise it up at the last day." Should 
 it be asked how much God had given to Christ, 
 the answer is, "he gave him power over all 
 flesh, because he was the son of man." Shall 
 we consult the apostles and find a different will 
 manifested on the part of God ? No. The 
 author of our text could offer up his devotions in 
 faith for all mankind, and believe that his prayer 
 was congenial to the design of Him, " who will
 
 V. t\ lefevre's sermon. 123 
 
 have all men to be saved and come to the 
 knowledge of his truili." As lar, then, as the 
 council of the Deity is concerned, it is in favor 
 of universal salvation ; the only difficulty which 
 remains to solve, is whether this will, will be ac- 
 complished ; and this will lead us to consider 
 another particular mentioned in the text, that we 
 should look unto Jesus, not only as the author^ 
 but the finisher or perfecter of our faith. We 
 remark in the first place, that if the will of God 
 is not accomplished, then his purposes or design 
 in the redemption of man, must be frustrated. 
 But this is absolutely impossible from the nature 
 of the Deity himself. A God who wills the sal- 
 vation of his creatures, hue cannot accomplish 
 il\is desire, is a very weak God. We admire 
 his benevolence, but we pity his infirmity. We 
 read that " they have no sense or knowledge, 
 nho pray to a God that cannot save." And 
 such seems to be precisely the character of this 
 good-natured, but weak Being. Let us be care- 
 ful not to join such senseless worshippers. Let 
 the God whom we adore, be at least, one that is 
 infinite in his attributes — a being w ho has devi- 
 sed the best possible plan that infinite wisdom 
 could suggest, that infinite power could accom- 
 j)lish, and that infinite love can dictate. 
 
 if, again, tliis will of the Deity is not accom- 
 plished, then will Christ also be disappointed in 
 jiis object. He came to do the will of his heav-
 
 124 c. F. lefevre's sermon. 
 
 enly Father — tliat was liis joy that was set be- 
 fore him — that was his delight. If, then, in- 
 stead of redeeming a world, the Great Captain of 
 our Salvation should ultimately deliver only a 
 few captives, and the arch enemy should rob 
 him of the spoil — and while Christ has his thou- 
 sands, the enemy should have his tens of thou- 
 sands, how could he ever " see of the travail of 
 his soul and be satisfied .^" Who would be the 
 conqueror ? Surely there can be no difficulty in 
 answering this question. But we believe that 
 the will of God will be accomplished, because 
 there is nothing that can resist it. We cannot be- 
 lieve that man possesses a power that defies Om- 
 nipotence. We have not so far involved our~ 
 selves in the mazes of heathen mythology, as to 
 believe that a successful war can be waged with 
 heaven. We believe not, that God has given 
 his creatures a power that must be destructive 
 of his own purposes, and that like the fabled giants 
 of old, but with more success, men can shake 
 the firm throne of the Eternal himself — and hurl 
 back at Omnipotence his own red thunderbolts. 
 No — we are forced to adopt the conclusion, that 
 whatever the will of God may be towards his 
 creatures, whether that he shall blot them from 
 the map of existence, and leave them in an eter- 
 nal night — or whether he shall raise them up to 
 linger in a state of unending torment — or what 
 appears to u? most consistent with his goodness.
 
 t. I:. LEFEVRe's sermon. 125 
 
 — most Godlike in him, while it is most con- 
 solatory to man, that he will make them the ever- 
 lasting monuments of his goodness. Whatever 
 the destiny of man may be, it will be precisely 
 that, which the Eternal God intended that it 
 should be — it will be in unison with his will, his 
 purpose and his design. 
 
 Again, we believe that the will of God tow^ards 
 the human race is of the most gracious character. 
 That God has ever had towards his dependent 
 offspring all those feelings of affection and love 
 that characterize the best and most tender of 
 parents. When then Christ appeared among 
 men, he was but the image of his Father's own 
 adorable perfections, manifesting in a hfe of ten- 
 derness, mercy, compassion and forgiveness — 
 that very disposition which God entertains to- 
 wards his frail children. Christ was but the re- 
 flex lustre of his Father's perfections, manifested 
 for our better acquaintance, in the flesh, that he 
 might be our elder brother. 
 
 To make known these great and consoling 
 truths — to hold up the character of the Father of 
 the spirits of all flesh in its true light — to make 
 known his will towards the children of men — that 
 was his mission — it was the mission of love to a 
 foolish and blind world — this was the joy that was 
 set before him — for this, he endured the cross 
 and despised the shame. Yes ; and though he 
 was well aware that in order to effect our rescue
 
 126 ( . F. LtFEVRt's SERMON. 
 
 from darkness and delusion, he must quit the 
 bosom of the Father, and unite his pure spirit 
 to our sinful flesli — though he knew that for the 
 songs of angels and the joys of heaven, he would 
 meet with the contradictions of sinners, and the 
 assaults of hell — though gifted with prophetic 
 vision, he saw from the height above, every step 
 that he should have to travel in the earth below ; 
 though he saw the principalities and powers of 
 darkness ready to dispute with him every inch 
 of the territory that they had usurped; though, to- 
 use the lofty language of the prophet Isaiah, he- 
 saw that the battle would be "with confused noise- 
 and garments rolled in blood" — the prospect of 
 all these sufferings could not for a moment divert 
 him from his purpose of bringing the prisoners 
 out of the pit. Impelled by love, strong as death 
 — love which many waters could not quench 
 neither could the floods drown — love which 
 passeth knowledge, he said, lo, I come — neither 
 turned he away back, but taking out of our hands 
 the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup 
 of fury, he suffered it not, bitter and deadly as it 
 was, to pass from him, till having drunk the last 
 drop, he could exclaim, It is finished. 
 
 In view of this exalted and sublime character 
 of Christ, well might the apostle direct the atten- 
 tion of the brethren to this "author and finisher 
 of his faith" — well might he lay before them the 
 brilliant path of glory which he trod, in the office
 
 c. K. lefevre's sermon. 127 
 
 of his ministry — well might he propose his ex- 
 ample as worthy of their devoted imitation, and 
 while they should experience the bufFetings of 
 fortune — while the treachery of friends or the 
 malice of enemies, should shake their purpose — • 
 they might " consider him that endured such 
 contradiction of sinners against himself, lest they 
 should be wearied and faint in their minds." 
 Perhaps no followers of Christ were more per- 
 secuted and labored more abundantly than the 
 eminent author of our text. He experienced all 
 the malice that a partialist church could inflict, 
 because he preached a " God who was the Sa- 
 viour of all men." But while he was laboring 
 in the cause of impartial grace, while he was de- 
 claring to the family of mankind the unsearcha- 
 ble riches of Christ, he found that when his la- 
 bors abounded, his consolations did much more 
 abound. The glorious theme of a world's re- 
 demption, inspired his tongue, and nerved his 
 arm for the conflict. He arrayed himself in the 
 panoply of heaven. " His loins were girt about 
 with the girdle of truth ; his breast was secured 
 by the breastplate of righteousness. His feet 
 were shod with the preparation of the gospel of 
 peace — on his arm he took the shield of faith — 
 his head was adorned with the helmet of salva- 
 tion, while he held in his hand, the sword of the 
 Spirit, the word of the Hving God." Thus ac-
 
 128 r. F. LKFLVRE'S SLRMuN. 
 
 coutered with weapons tryed in the furnace of 
 divine love, he was more than conqueror through 
 him that loved us. He destroyed his enemies — 
 even as God will destroy his enemies — by mak- 
 ing them his friends — by removing the dark 
 clouds in which ignorance and error have involved 
 them, and pouring the light of divine truth in 
 their benighted minds. May every servant of 
 our Master thus go armed to the combat, for 
 thus alone may he hope for success in turning 
 men from the power of satan to the power of 
 God. 
 
 The application of our subject is full of in^ 
 struction. We believe that we are preaching the 
 same doctrine as our blessed Master and his- 
 faithful apostles. Of one thing we are certain^ 
 that we experience the same reproach and per- 
 secution. There is scarcely an epithet of op- 
 probrium which is applied to us, that has not been 
 bestowed on Him, who is the author and finisher 
 of our faith. Are we called blasphemers .'' Sa 
 was he. Are we accused of being the friends 
 of publicans and sinners .'' So w^as he. Are we 
 spoken of as emissaries of the prince of dark- 
 ness ? Behold he was accused of being in league 
 with Beelzebub. Do we advocate the cause of 
 tolerance and liberty of conscience, against the 
 various schemes which avarice has invented to 
 impose upon the world .'' Then like our Master 
 we are accused of being gluttons and wine bib-
 
 c. V. lefeviie's sermon. 129 
 
 bers and sabbath-breakers. Do we both labor 
 and suffer reproach ? Tlicn il is, because, hke 
 faithful Paul, " we trust in the living God, who 
 is the Saviour of all men." Brethren, since 
 such is the case, let us arm ourselves with the 
 same mind which was also in Christ Jesus. Re- 
 member, '' if a man have not the spirit of Christ, 
 he is none of his." Let us return good for evil, 
 not railing for railing, but contrary wise blessing. 
 And this we can do, without any compromise of 
 duty. It does not require that we should wink 
 at error or withhold truth. No — our duty is to 
 declare the whole counsel of God. Error can 
 never be made more odious than it is in itself ; 
 and we fear that much injury has been done to 
 the world from an unwillingness to strip off her 
 meretricious ornaments and produce her in her 
 naked deformity. But while we thus deal with 
 error, let us spare the errorist. It is bad enough 
 to be deceived by lies, without being abused for 
 our credulity. When we see the world at large, 
 blinded with a false theology — dreading the ven- 
 geance of an angry God — their happiest moments 
 clouded by the fictitious terror of a future state, 
 they are objects of our sincerest pity. The 
 slave tied to the galley for life, or the prisoner 
 that drags about the ruthless chain, is not so 
 worthy of our commiseration. ''The iron thai 
 enters the soul" cuts th.o deepest — tiic chain that 
 is on the mind is the mo^t intolerable.
 
 130 t. r. LEKEVRE^S SERMON. 
 
 In ihe promulgation of the doctrine of the gos- 
 pel, we have the same encourngement as the 
 apostle. '' AVe are compassed about with a cloud 
 of witnesses." Surely, my brethren, we have 
 much to encourage here. How few years is it, 
 since the pilgrim Murray unfurled the banner of 
 universal salvation and sounded the gospel trum- 
 pet. Around that broad banner, how many thou-- 
 sands of noble souls have now assembled — how 
 has that sound from the trumpet gone through 
 the continent and borne on the wings of the 
 wind echoed and re-echoed, till every hamlet 
 has heard the glad tidings of salvation. I cannot 
 cast my eye over this assembled multitude — I 
 cannot see the east and west — the north and 
 south, pouring in their heralds of the cross — I 
 cannot recal the history of the past, when two oc 
 three undaunted souls breasted the storm alone — 
 and see what I now see, and hear what I now 
 hear, and not exclaim. Blessed be God — " we 
 are compassed about with a cloud of witnesses.'* 
 The very thought is inspiration, and we could 
 almost say, like the good old vSimeon when he 
 took the new-born Messiah in his arms, " Lord, 
 now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for 
 mine eyes have seen thy salvaiion." 
 
 Let us improve our subject by following the 
 apostolic injunction — whatever may be the 
 weights, which oppresses this holy cause — what- 
 ever may be the besetting sin — let us lay it aside.
 
 SERMON. 131 
 
 While a world's redemption is the theme of our 
 teaching, let union and brotherly love be the or- 
 naments of our lives. All minor points should 
 be forgotten. Whether Christ is a merely hu- 
 man or a super-angelic being — whether punish- 
 ment ceases with extinction of life in that body 
 in which sin was committed ; or whether the 
 spirit suffer a state of disciplinary punishment, 
 and like the fabled shades of the poet, vvanders 
 for a hundred years on the dark shores of the 
 Stygian lake — because its propitiatory sacrifice 
 was not offered, and the penitential tear had not 
 washed away the last damning sin — whether 
 man possesses an immortal soul, or whether the 
 next state is dependent entirely on the resurrec- 
 tion — these are subjects on which universalists 
 may differ, and perhaps always will differ, but 
 which should not occasion division in their ranks. 
 I do not wish to be understood as saying these 
 subjects should not be canvassed. So far from 
 this, they should be examined with all attention 
 and candour, that we may learn all the light on 
 the subject that we can. But while we are en- 
 gaged in these inquiries, let us remember, that 
 they are secondary to the great truths in which 
 we are all agreed — that the government of the 
 Deity is truly paternal — that religion and virtue 
 carry a present reward in their, bosom, and vice 
 carries its sting with it — in other words, that duty 
 lis the road to happiness, and disobedience is the
 
 132 -€. F. LEFEVRF.'i, SERMOTN". 
 
 way of misery. While, then, we are united in 
 inculcating these important truths, which, wliile 
 they are most consolatory to man, are purifying 
 in their influence on the moral character, let us 
 not break the bond of fellowship by mere dissent 
 on speculative opinions. Our business is to de- 
 stroy the foul monster endless misery, that has 
 so long deceived the nations and filled the earth 
 with terror, insanity, suicide and death. When 
 we shall have slain this mammoth which is deso- 
 lating the folds, we can then, at our leisure, turn 
 and rid ourselves of less noxious animals. 
 
 Finally, brethren, let us study our own char- 
 acters and search our own hearts, and if we dis- 
 cover any besetting sin, that stands opposed to 
 the propagation of the pure gospel of Christ, let 
 us immolate it on the altar of duty. Let this 
 cause rise paramount in all our hearts — we can- 
 not be engaged in one more God-hke — or that 
 will carry more peace to the soul — it is the cause 
 of truth, religious freedom, and benevolence, 
 against the united forces of error, superstition, 
 cruelty and oppression. Let us then devote 
 ourselves to propagating it — be instant in sea- 
 son and out of season — recommend it by our 
 lives, so shall we walk worthy of the high voca- 
 tion wherewith we are called — so shall we adorn 
 the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things. 
 
 Amen.
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 It is thought that a short account of the 
 Convention, at which the foregoing sermons 
 were delivered; embracing a concise statement 
 of the proceedings of that body, together with 
 its circular address, might be a suitable and de- 
 sirable appendix to this little volume; and which 
 is accordingly here given. 
 
 This General Convention of the denomina- 
 tion of universalists, convened at Concord, N. 
 H. to hold its annual session, according to ad- 
 journment, on Wednesday and Thursday, 19th 
 and 20th of September 1832. On the prece- 
 ding evening, after devout prayer, offered by 
 Br. Robert Bartlett, the Council was duly or- 
 ganized by the choice of 
 
 Br. Hosea Ballou, Moderator. 
 
 Br. Thomas F. King, Clerk, and 
 
 Br. Hosea Ballou, 2d, Assistant Clerk. 
 
 A committee of five, (three clergymen and 
 two lay brethren) was appointed to arrange the 
 public services of the occasion, 
 12
 
 134 APPENDIX. 
 
 Brs. Russell Streeter, T. J. Greenwood, and 
 Warren Skinner, were appointed a committee on 
 applications for letters of Fellowship and Ordi- 
 nation. 
 
 A committee was appointed consisting of two 
 brethren from each State within the jurisdiction 
 of this convention to consider the subject of a 
 General Convention of Universalists, for the 
 whole denomination in the United States, and 
 to report thereon. 
 
 On Wednesday morning, after prayer by Br. 
 Brimblecom, the Fellowship of the Convention 
 was, on request, granted to the '^ First Univer- 
 salist Society in Hanover, N. H." 
 
 In the afternoon, the committee appointed on 
 the subject of a General Convention of Univer- 
 salists for the United States, reported in favor of 
 such a convention. 
 
 The committee on Fellowship and Ordina- 
 tion reported in favor of granting fellowship to 
 Brs. T. H. Taylor, and A. Norwood, and that 
 ordination be conferred on Br. H. F. Stearns, 
 which report was accepted. 
 
 On Thursday morning, after prayer by Br. J. 
 Annear, letters from several societies were read,
 
 APPE^'DIX. 135 
 
 and the report of the committee on the propos- 
 ed formation of a U. S. Convention was discus- 
 sed, and after mature dehberation, in the after- 
 noon, the report was adopted. 
 
 Committees w^ere appointed to enquire into 
 the literary qualifications of candidates for the 
 ministry. Committees of discipHne were also 
 appointed. 
 
 The Clerk was requested to prepare the min- 
 utes of the session, and procure them published, 
 accompanied by a Circular Letter. 
 
 After uniting in devout prayer with the Mod- 
 erator, the convention adjourned to meet in 
 Strafford, Vt. on the third Wednesday and 
 Thursday of September, 1833. 
 
 CIRCULAR LETTER FOR 1832. 
 The Ministers and Delegates composing the 
 *' General Convention of Universalists," send 
 salutations of peace and christian affection, to 
 all of like precious faith wheresoever scatter- 
 ed abroad : — 
 
 Beloved Brethren: — It is with great joy 
 that we address to you this annual epistle, be- 
 cause we have reason to be assured that all faith- 
 ful Universalists are -both eager and happy to 
 learn any facts connected with the spread of 
 their peculiar doctrines.
 
 13G APPENDIX. 
 
 We were received by our brethren in Con- 
 cord, with a most hearty welcome, and many of 
 us, during the session, were kindly entertained 
 by christians of other denominations. This 
 last circumstance, in connexion with the fact, 
 that every house of worship in the place was 
 voluntarily offered for the use of the Convention, 
 indicates a very favorable change in the public 
 sentiment respecting our views of God and his 
 moral government. 
 
 There are, it is true, a few bigoted clergymen 
 scattered here and there over the country, who 
 seem to cherish such a settled enmity against 
 Universalists, and especially against Universalist 
 preachers, that they would exclude us from the 
 common civilities of life; but we have reason to 
 be thankful that their influence is diminishing 
 every year. This is particularly the case in 
 New England. In this enlightened portion of 
 our happy country, the very name of bigotry is 
 becoming odious to the great mass of the people, 
 and where its reality is exhibited, it of course, 
 either excites general pity or contempt. 
 
 Our council was composed of forty-nine 
 preachers, and an unusual number of lay dele- 
 gates, among the latter of whom, we were high- 
 ly pleased to recognize some of the venerable 
 fathers in our Israel. 
 
 It h worthy of remark, that the only /urviving 
 member of the first Universalist Socictv on th<?
 
 APPENDIX. 137 
 
 continent of America, was present with us, and 
 took part in the deliberations of the council. 
 This was Col. Wm. Pierce, of Gloucester, 
 Mass. who although at the advanced age of more 
 than four score years, still retains his bodily and 
 mental powers, in almost undiminished vigor. 
 The feelings of this venerable patriarch must be 
 truly enviable in respect to w^hat he has seen and 
 heard of the rise and progress of our glorious 
 doctrine in the United States. Surely he may 
 say in the language of Simeon of old, " Lord now 
 lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, accord- 
 ing to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy 
 salvation, w-hich thou hast prepared before the 
 face of all people: A light to lighten the Gen- 
 tiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." 
 
 The business of the council was transacted in 
 the exercise of a spirit of kindness and mutual 
 forbearance. There was one subject, however, 
 (the formation of a General Convention of Uni- 
 versalists in the United States,) on which a dif- 
 ference of opinion was manifested. This meas- 
 ure was debated with great freedom and frank- 
 ness, both by its friends and opposers, and was 
 finally adopted contrary to the wishes of a very 
 respectable minority. 
 
 The majority of the Convention was decid- 
 edly of the opinion, that a general bond of un- 
 ion in our denomination, was both desirable and 
 
 12*
 
 135 Aprt.NDix. 
 
 practicable. They therefore voted to recom- 
 mend to the brotherhood throughout the country 
 the formation of State Conventions where such 
 bodies do not ah'eady exist, and that these State 
 Conventions be represented at our next meeting 
 in Strafibrd, Vt. either by letter or delegation — 
 the latter mode will of course always be the 
 most acceptable. 
 
 There are already existing six State Conven- 
 tions, viz. — Maine, Connecticut, New York, 
 Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Ohio. Of 
 these, four had appointed delegates to confer 
 with us on the expediency of the aforesaid meas- 
 ure; but we regret to say, that the delegation 
 from the State Conventions of Pennsylvania and 
 Connecticut, were unable to attend in person. 
 The former of these ecclesiastical bodies was 
 represented by letter, from which we make the 
 following brief extract, as expressive of the 
 views of our brethren in Pennsylvania : " We 
 are decidedly in favor of forming the proposed 
 Convention, provided the powers in it vested are 
 only advisory.''^ 
 
 Such also are the views of the brethren in 
 Maine and New York, as distinctly stated by 
 their representatives. 
 
 From information received during the session, 
 we have reason to expect that State Conventions 
 will be organized in the course of the current 
 year, in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massa-
 
 APPENDIX. 139 
 
 chusetts. We should be highly gratified to learn 
 the views of our brethren in South Carolina on 
 the utility of this general union, and we would re- 
 spectfully suggest to them the propriety of taking 
 some order on this subject, at the next annual 
 meeting of their respective State Conventions, 
 and of communicating officially the result of 
 their dehberations thereon, to Rev. Hosea Bal- 
 lon 2d. of Roxbury, Mass. who is the standing 
 clerk of our Convention. 
 
 Beloved Brethren — We can assure you that 
 a revival of religion, in the best sense of these 
 abused terms, is rapidly spreading throughout 
 our land by the preaching of universal salvation. 
 It is begetting in the minds of men a calm and 
 unshaken confidence in their heavenly Father — 
 it is expanding their hearts with that charity to- 
 wards their fellow men, which is the bond of 
 perfectness Those who are interested in the 
 support of bigotry and superstition are evidently 
 alarmed at the favorable change that is taking 
 place in the religious views, and hopes, and 
 prospects, ofthose who are converted to our faith. 
 Nor are they much less apprehensive respect- 
 ing its indirect effect on the popular faith and 
 worship. 
 
 Orthodoxy, it is true, has the same nominal 
 existence now, in the creeds, that it had in the 
 early settlement of the country. The Jive points 
 of Calvinism are still held, or retained, in the
 
 140 
 
 i-PPL.NDlX. 
 
 acknowledged standards of faith in most ortho- 
 dox churches, as being the very cream of the 
 gospel; and yet how careful are the clergy to 
 modify and soften the rugged features of these 
 several doctrines. They know that the people 
 will not receive such horrid doctrines for the 
 gospel if represented in the jionest, undisguised 
 manner of our puritan forefathers ; and hence 
 it has happened that the divinity taught from 
 the pulpits of the evangelicals (as they modestly 
 call themselves) differs so widely from that of 
 the Assembly's Catechism, and other kindred 
 formularies. 
 
 Brethren in the ministry — Let these facts en- 
 courage us to renew our zeal in the cause of 
 christian Universalism — they are among tlie 
 sure indications, that our labor is not in vain in 
 the Lord. "The harvest truly is plenteous, 
 but the laborers are few*. Pray ye therefore 
 the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth 
 laborers into his harvest." — It is worthy of re- 
 cord, that there never was so great a demand 
 for L^niversalist preachers as at present. From 
 almost every town in New England, the Mace- 
 donian cry is heard, " come over and help us." 
 Let the young men of our denomination who 
 are preparing for the ministry, be encouraged 
 by these facts — let them apply themselves dili- 
 gently to their appropriate studies, that they
 
 A.PPENDIX 141 
 
 may enter the field of labor abundantly qualifi- 
 ed for usefulness. 
 
 Let every preacher in fellowship be careful 
 to guard his heart from the seductive charms of 
 popularity. Let us all conduct so as to deserve 
 the good opinion of the community, but God 
 forbid that we should ever attempt to purchase 
 it, by a surrender of our independence, or by a 
 compromise with error. Let us remain united 
 among ourselves, and faithful to the great prin- 
 ciples of the gospel, and we have nothing to fear. 
 
 All who read this epistle are affectionately 
 exhorted to put their trust in God as the univer- 
 sal Father and benefactor of mankind — to con- 
 sider well, and to discharge truly their obliga- 
 tions to Him. May they rejoice in his love, as 
 manifested to the world through his Son Jesus 
 Christ, and give all diligence to add to their 
 faith virtue and all the christian graces. " Then 
 shall their light break forth as the morning, and 
 the glory of the Lord shall be their reward.*' 
 Per Order, Thomas F. King.
 
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